The Game
by deepwater1978
Summary: She shouldn't get involved with him. He was the king of mind games, the master of manipulation. He had to win at everything, no matter what it was. He expected her to give her all to him, while he got to remain safe and emotionless.
1. Chapter 1

The elevator door opened, and Elena Gilbert walked towards her reception desk. The click of her heels was the only sound echoing through the empty offices. She clutched the cup of coffee in her hand almost desperately, relying on it to get her through a long day. She shouldn't complain. She should be grateful to have a decent paying job. But, it was Monday, and she would rather be at home in bed, curled up with a book than be stuck here all day. She had been looking for a new job for a month now. Truth be told, she was too damn stubborn to leave this place. That would mean that he had won, and she couldn't have that.

Getting out of bed on Monday morning was not an easy task for Elena. How much easier it must be to be a man, she reflected not for the first time. No makeup to apply, no hair to straighten, no legs to shave. They didn't even have to sit to pee, the lazy bastards. Just shower, shave, wham-bam, out the door in ten minutes.

"Good morning, sir," Elena greeted Alaric Saltzman, one of the four lawyers who worked at the firm.

"Morning, Elena," he said, smiling warmly as he stopped by her desk. "Did you bring me my coffee?"

"Did you bring me my chocolate?" She fired back, a private joke between them. When she first started working as a legal receptionist at the firm, the men would ask her to bring them coffee every morning, which wasn't in her job description. At least, she didn't think it was, nor did she want it to be. She told them if they expected coffee, she better be getting something in return, because they were all equal in the workplace. Luckily, they found her amusing, and she got to keep her job.

"Tomorrow," Alaric replied, grinning. "When is my first client due again?"

Elena looked at her watch. "You have thirty minutes."

Alaric nodded and entered his office, closing the door behind him. Two more of the lawyers arrived, and she wished them a good morning, then opened her laptop and turned it on. When he arrived, however, she didn't bother to look up. Yes, Damon Salvatore was also a lawyer here, and yes, he was good at what he does. He was a criminal lawyer and, at thirty years old, he had done extremely well for himself. But that didn't mean she had to like him.

"Elena," Damon said, and she pretended that the deep baritone of his voice didn't have any effect on her. She was really good at that, pretending.

"Mr Salvatore," she said, still not looking up at him. She knew she was rude. She, essentially, worked for this man, and he could have her fired, but he hadn't yet. Elena didn't know why—guilt, probably. Maybe he just liked to torture her. He was a bastard anyway.

Damon sighed and put a folder on her desk. "New client. Can you add her details to the system?"

Elena nodded, reaching out for the file. When she grabbed it though, he put his hand on top of hers, stopping her movement. She raised her gaze, their eyes locking. His blue-grey eyes looked back at her, framed in thick lashes, assessing, always assessing. His dark brown, almost black hair was growing a little too long, and in need of a trim, but he managed to pull it off. He was wearing a crisp white shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and she knew that shirt probably cost more than she made in a week. With striking, intense blue-grey eyes contrasting wonderfully against darkened lashes and eyebrows, a "bad boy" smile, Damon Salvatore could be described as relatively athletic, tall, strong, sexy and seductive. This man was a danger to women. He was the one who should be locked away.

"Let me go," she demanded, now looking down at their hands, keeping her expression impassive. "I don't remember giving you permission to touch me."

He looked almost sad for a moment, before he shielded it. He let go of her hand—reluctantly, it seemed. "Are you always going to be like this? It has been a week. Why don't you just—"

"Why don't you just walk into your office and leave me alone," Elena said quietly, so no one else could overhear. She forced a fake smile on her face. "Your first client will be here soon. Have a nice day, Mr Salvatore. If I'm lucky, today is the day you will be run over by a car."

His jaw hardened, and he opened his mouth to say something, but then thought better of it. Instead, he walked into his office, closing the door behind him harder than he needed to.

How mature.

Well, was she surprised?

No.

Because he was a bastard.

She picked up her coffee and brought it to her lips, taking a long sip.

He had a bad reputation. She should have known better to get involved with him.

She was being silly and reckless.

Why?

Maybe it was those eyes.

Most probably it was his body.

Or maybe it was his quick wit, easy charm and the way he made her feel so at ease.

Damon Salvatore was the reason Elena now hated her job, but he was also the reason she wouldn't quit. If she did, he would know it was because of what happened between them, and she couldn't let that happen. No, she just needed to forget all about him. He was nothing to her now, just someone she used to know. Someone she once trusted.

Someone who broke her heart.

* * *

 **To all my readers, this is my new Delena story. I'm hoping I can bring out the chemistry and dynamics of Delena in this new story again. This story won't be very dramatic - it will be strictly about Damon and Elena's relationship. Hopefully you guys/gals will still like it:)  
**

 **I can't thank you guys/gals for all the support and kind reviews that I have received so far!**


	2. Chapter 2

_One Year Ago_

Elena walked into work at least twenty minutes late, frantically looking around, hoping no one will notice. She ran her fingers through her long, dark brown hair, trying to tame it as much as possible, and then checked her makeup in a small mirror she kept in her handbag. She managed to line her brown doe eyes with eyeliner and coated her lashes in mascara, but that was the only product on her face. She put the mirror away, knowing it wasn't going to get any better today; it was just one of those days.

She overslept! She didn't want to get out of bed this morning because she had a late night. Well, her best friend, Caroline Forbes was being dumped and Elena couldn't just walk away from her. It was after midnight before she could go to bed. When her alarm went off this morning, she lifted a sleepy hand to her nightstand and fumbled around to silence the god-awful beeping. She wanted to lie there, snuggled in amongst her cosy down pillows. And that was what had happened. She fell asleep again!

When she thought she was safe, finally letting herself relax in her chair, she looked up into the smouldering blue-grey eyes of Damon Salvatore, one of the lawyers here at the firm.

"There you are," he said, smiling warmly at her. Elena smiled back.

Damon Salvatore was devilishly good-looking, and it was hard to pay attention in his presence.

"Yes, do you need something, Mr Salvatore?" she asked, quickly opening her laptop.

He grinned and handed her a piece of paper. "Could you please email Mr Smith and let him know his court date and time? I have to head out to court now myself."

Elena nodded and looked down at the paper, familiar with the name of the client and his case. "No problem."

"Excellent," Damon replied, glancing at his watch, then looking back at her. "You know it is not a crime to come in late every once in a while. I think this is only the second time you have done it since you started working here."

Elena's eyes widened. He paid that much attention? "I know it is not a crime," she said, looking him in the eye. "I just didn't think that my honest excuse of my best friend being dumped again, and her crying her little heart out was going to be a valid reason. I also hate being late in general. It is a pet peeve of mine, and not very professional."

"This place would fall apart without you," he stated matter-of-factly, gaze roaming over her face. "You know that, right? If you are late every now and again, we will forgive you. I better get going, but I will be back around eleven for my meeting." He walked to the elevator, but paused. "I'm sorry about your friend, Elena."

"Uh, thanks," Elena said, their eyes locking just as the elevator door shut. The thing with Caroline was she trusted way too easily and then, when she got hurt, it was up to Elena to pick up the pieces. Elena, on the other hand, didn't trust at all. Then again, that was probably why Caroline had so many dates, and why she hadn't gotten laid in over six months, although it felt more like ten years. She sent Caroline a quick message, telling her she didn't need Luke and his cheating ass, and that she was a wonderful person and deserved someone worthy of her. Then she looked over the schedule for the day before sending the email to Damon's client.

Damon.

Elena only called him by his first name in her head.

She was glad it was him who saw her, and not one of the other lawyers who worked at the firm. Two of them were older, and probably wouldn't have been as cool about it. The third, Alaric, was in his late thirties, but was usually grumpy.

She looked down at her black shirt and realised that she had done the buttons up wrong. She fixed it quickly, hoping Damon didn't notice it. Knowing her luck, he did.

 _Yeah, today is going to be a long-ass day,_ she thought.

x x x

Elena was on her lunchbreak, sitting at a café just across the road from the firm while eating a giant slice of chocolate cake, when Damon sat down opposite her. She looked up at him in confusion, wondering exactly what he was doing. Sure, they had had a few casual conversations before about non-work-related topics, but they had never sat together for a meal or anything like that.

"There is no point in me sitting alone at a different table," Damon said, flashing her a smile. "You don't mind, do you?"

Elena couldn't exactly say no, now could she?

She shook her head and muttered a very insincere, "Not at all."

Damon simply grinned, apparently finding her amusing, then ordered a coffee from a passing waitress.

"How is your friend holding up?" he asked, looking at her directly in the eye.

"She will be fine," Elena replied, putting her fork down. Did he actually care, or was he just making conversation? Damon Salvatore was somewhat of an enigma to her. Young, successful and too good-looking for his own good, the man exuded confidence, sex appeal and charm. A dangerous mix, which was what she thought. He was the type of man every woman dreamed about, but only a few could ever obtain. Before Elena took on this job, Debra, the receptionist who was training her before she left for overseas, warned her to stay away from Damon. She had looked at Debra quizzically, wondering why the receptionist would have to caution her in the first place, when it was very unprofessional to even consider getting involved with someone she essentially worked for. When Elena saw Damon for the first time though, she understood. He was sin, wrapped in a tall, tempting, muscled package. Still, she wouldn't go there. She needed this job, and he probably had women throwing themselves at him every day. Did she think she was pretty? Yes. Was she the woman who got the guy every other woman wanted? No.

Damon continued to study her, and she found herself squirming a little. She started to fuss with her hair, something she tended to do when she was a little nervous.

"Do I make you nervous?" he asked, calling her out, which either made him a jerk or just the no-bullshit type. She was hoping it was the latter.

Elena instantly dropped her hand. "No," she lied, then added, "It is just not every day that I sit at a café with my boss, hoping I don't have chocolate all over my mouth whilst trying to pretend I'm not awkward and terrible at small talk."

Damon threw his head back and laughed, drawing attention from others around them. "Your honesty is so very refreshing, Elena. No, you don't have chocolate on your face, I would have told you if you did. We can skip the small talk, and I don't mind your awkwardness. Be as awkward as you want, it doesn't make me feel uncomfortable. In fact, I find it strangely compelling."

Only because he was so confident. She didn't think anything could make him feel uncomfortable. He would probably dominate every situation, and somehow turned it around to benefit him. He seemed the type. Was he a control freak? Elena thought he was.

She picked her fork up and lifted another bite of chocolate deliciousness to her lips. "Okay."

"Good," he said, thanking the waitress as his coffee arrived. "Can I get you anything else?"

"Me?" she asked, shaking her head. "No, thank you."

 _If I want something, I will get it myself,_ she thought.

"You sure?" he asked, bringing the mug to his slightly parted, full lips. "I have noticed you always seem to have a cup of coffee attached to your hand. You want me to get you one to take back to the office?"

Suspicion filled Elena. Was Damon always this nice, or did he want something? "I'm good."

A woman walked past, giving Damon the eye. He didn't pay her any attention, but it had Elena wondering just who this man was. Did he have a girlfriend? What was his story? Why did Debra warn her away from him? Maybe Debra had a thing with him, and was playing the part of a scorned lover. All she said was that he had a reputation, but Elena was not one to listen to gossip. She liked to make her own decision about people and judge them by how they treated her personally, not by rumours.

"You have been working here for a few months now, right?" Damon asked, bringing her out from her thoughts.

She nodded. "Yes. Four actually"

"Do you like it?" he continued, then looked down at his watch. "Damn. I should be getting back." He threw some money on the table, way more than what his coffee would be. "Can we continue this conversation later? Same time tomorrow?" He flashed her a devilish smile, stood, and said, "Nice talking to you, Elena." Then he departed from the café, leaving her staring behind him, wondering what the hell just happened.

Same time tomorrow?

Elena didn't think so.

X x x

"He pretty much pretended he really liked me, and that he wanted to date me so I would sleep with him, and then bailed after I did," Caroline said, staring into her tub of cookies and cream ice cream. "All he said was that he isn't ready for a relationship. Completely changed his tune."

"Asshole," Elena muttered, handing her some gummy bears. "Forget him, he is obviously a dick. Just learn from it and move on."

Caroline picked out the red bears from the packet and shoved a few in her mouth. "I have the worst luck in men."

Caroline said that line so much it was going to go on her tombstone.

"Maybe you should stop the whole online dating thing," Elena suggested, shrugging. "Or at least take a break from it."

"Yeah," Caroline murmured, putting the lid back on the ice cream. "I know. I just end up going back to it whenever I get bored. So many other people have met good men on there. It is just me who somehow finds the dregs of society."

Elena opened another bottle of wine.

She and Caroline had known each other since they were about seven years old, and had been inseparable ever since. They had lived together for the past five years, since they moved out of their parents' homes at eighteen. Elena personally thought Caroline was freaking out because she was still single. Caroline said that her biological clock is ticking, but for some reason Elena didn't feel the same pressure that she did. They were only twenty-three years old. There were worse things than being single. If Elena ended up being a single dog mum, so be it. It actually sounded like a pretty good life to her.

An hour later, they were jumping on the bed singing along to "Zero" by Chris Brown, Caroline's broken heart temporarily forgotten. Then they fell asleep, surrounded by candy wrappers.

x x x

Elena swallowed two painkillers the next morning, trying to look alive so no one at work noticed her hangover. The problem with living with her best friend was that fun times weren't always saved for the weekend; they could get out of hand at any given moment. She paid a little more attention to her appearance this morning to hide the bags under her eyes, or so she had been telling herself. She didn't spend an hour ironing her hair straight, or an extra half an hour trying to get the perfect wing eyeliner for her little lunch chat with Damon. Nope, she didn't do that at all. As a matter of fact, she brought her own lunch today, for the first time ever, hoping to avoid him. She had made sandwiches, a fruit salad, and brought a thermos of coffee, so there was really no need for her to leave her desk today, except to use the bathroom. She didn't ask herself why she had thought about this so much, or why, when the elevator doors opened and Damon walked out, she looked down at her laptop to avoid his gaze.

"Morning, Elena." Stopping in front of her desk, Damon gave her no alternative but to raise her head and wished him a good morning in return.

"You look beautiful today," he whispered, so low only she could hear it.

Her eyes narrowed at his inappropriate comment. "Thank you, Mr Salvatore," she replied, trying to put him in his place.

His blue-grey eyes flashed with amusement. "Damon. Call me Damon, please."

Elena didn't know what to reply to that. Sure, in her head she had called him Damon, but she had never said it out loud, especially not to him. Why was he telling her to call him by his first name now, as opposed to when they were first introduced?

"Why now?" She blurted out, deciding to be honest with her thoughts.

"Everyone except you in this office calls me Damon, Elena," he explained, looking down at his watch. "I need you to cancel my ten a.m. appointment, please. I have somewhere I need to be. I will be back to have lunch with you though, and I think you should get more than a piece of cake today."

"And I think you should have more than a cup of coffee for lunch," she fired back, fed up with his high-and-mighty act.

He lifted his head and smirked at her in response. "I only had coffee because I had a brunch meeting."

"Oh."

"Which you should know, because you scheduled it."

Right. She scheduled the brunch meeting. How could she forget?

"I brought lunch from home today," Elena told him, shrugging nonchalantly. "Rain check?"

"You never bring lunch," Damon remarked, tilting his head to the side and narrowing his eyes. "Is sitting with me so bad?" He straightened, looking contemplative. She wondered if a woman had ever told him no before. Somehow, she doubted it.

"No, it is not so bad," she said, clearing her throat. "It is just that…I work for you. We are not friends, so I don't see the need to pretend that we are."

 _Oh, damn._

 _He is so going to fire me._

Why did she say that? Why couldn't she keep her mouth shut?

"Well, why don't we become friends then?" Damon asked, grinning down at her. "You don't work for me, Elena, you work for the firm. And we see each other every day, so I don't see why we can't be friends."

Elena didn't know why, but every time the word 'friends' left his mouth, she gritted her teeth. He wanted to be friends. Would that make their working relationship awkward? She didn't know. She guessed she just had to make sure no lines were crossed, because she did want to keep this job.

"Uhh, okay," she mumbled, not sure what to say to him. Why was he singling her out like this? "Can this newfound friendship start tomorrow? Because I really did bring lunch from home."

"What did you bring?"

 _Is he always so nosy?_ She wondered.

"Peanut butter sandwiches," she said, shrugging sheepishly. "I like it."

Which adult would have peanut butter sandwiches for lunch? Elena didn't care. She liked it and thought they were delicious.

He chuckled, probably because he now knew she was a little weird. Then he surprised her by saying, "Save me a piece," before heading inside his office.

Elena watched the door close and shook her head, curious as to how this was going to play out.

* * *

 **How this was going to play out? I have always loved the idea of Damon and Elena having peanut butter sandwiches, LOL! Not sure why but I thought it would be fun:)  
**

 **Anyway, thank you so much for the support and kind reviews.**


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, Damon was sitting at a table by the window of the café, waiting for Elena. She took the seat opposite him as gracefully as she could. "Well, I'm here."

He smiled at her. "I can see that. Hungry?"

He passed her a menu and, even though she knew it by heart, she glanced down and browsed the selections anyway. She didn't know why, because she usually ordered the same thing every time: the hamburger and fries, followed by a slice of chocolate cake. If she was not very hungry, like the other day, she would just get the cake.

"Starving," she said, putting the menu down and glancing up at him. "How was court this morning?"

Damon exhaled forcefully. "Well, I won."

"Of course you did," Elena replied in a dry tone.

His lips kicked up at the corners, his smouldering blue-grey eyes dancing. "Why don't you tell me something about you, Elena?"

"What would you like to know?"

Elena looked at the crisp white shirt Damon was wearing today, sleeves folded up his forearms, and paired with black slacks. He dresses impeccably, and it could be a little intimidating. She was wearing a high-waisted pencil skirt and blouse, both in black. She looked good, both professional and sexy, but there was something about the way he dressed that just screamed 'I am someone.'

"Are you single?" he asked, glancing up from the menu. "Or seeing anyone?"

Elena arched her brow. "A little personal, don't you think?"

He shrugged his broad shoulders. "Isn't that something a friend would know?"

She pursed her lips, but answered him anyway. "Yes, I'm single. How about you?"

He nodded slowly. "I'm single, yes."

They just stared at each other for a few moments in silence, both trying to read one another, until the waitress appeared, saving her. They both ordered, and then they were once again left alone.

"Views on marriage and love?" he asked next, leaning back in his seat, patiently waiting for her reply.

"That's a broad question," Elena said, brows furrowing. "Do I want to get married one day? Sure. Will I be extremely upset if I don't, and lower my standards just to be married? Hell no."

His lip twitched.

"I will wait for someone who is right for me, or I will be alone," she continued, answering with brutal honesty. "I won't settle for less. And as for love, yes, I believe in it. I don't think we have one soul mate or anything though. I believe there are lots of people out there for each of us."

"I see," he said, an odd expression on his face. "So, you want love, but you will also be content being a crazy cat lady if you don't meet someone worthy of you."

"Crazy dog lady," she corrected, laughing. "I don't much care for cats. So, why did you ask me that?"

"That's how two people get to know one another, isn't it?"

"I guess," she said slowly.

"Plus, you said you are terrible at small talk," Damon added, smirking. "Your turn."

"Okay…" she paused, racking her brain for something to ask him. "You can't fire me or anything if I cross the line with these questions though."

He laughed, his whole body shaking. "I won't fire you, Elena. Ask me anything. Your job is safe."

"Thanks," Elena said dryly, then leaned across the table, giving them an illusion of privacy. "Did you like the sandwiches I made yesterday?"

She had saved him a piece, and he grabbed it when he was on his way out to a meeting. She didn't see him after that though, so she never got to ask him about it.

"I did," he replied, shaking his head and laughing once more. "Hell, you never say the things I think you will."

"I can be a little random," she agreed, nodding. "You will get used to it, friend."

Their eyes connected, and they held one another's gaze.

"You have the most amazing eyes. Your eyes are really brown," Damon said suddenly. "I noticed them the first day you started working here."

 _Your eyes are amazing, too,_ Elena thought. She didn't say that out loud though; instead, she just kept her mouth shut. He didn't need to know just how much attention she had been paying to him since she started to work here.

"Uh, thanks?" she replied, lowering her gaze to his lips, another unsafe place. She quickly forced herself to look at her hands. Just what was going on here? So he was giving her a few compliments, so what? It didn't mean anything, right?

Right?

The food arrived, which thankfully gave Elena something to do. "You don't normally eat here," she pointed out. This was kind of her lunch place, and she had never seen him in here before the other day.

"Alaric recommended it to me," Damon said, referring to one of the other lawyers. "I usually just grab something from somewhere on the way to a meeting. This is the first time I have actually eaten here."

She looked down at his plate of pasta. "And what do you think?"

He glanced up at me and smiled slowly. "I think I'm going to have to come here more often."

She shoved a chip in her mouth and chewed slowly. "I see."

"Plans tonight?"

"Date night," she said, referring to her weekly dinner out with Caroline. He didn't need to know that though.

"With whom?" he asked, raising his brow.

She just grinned at him, not offering any answers.

They finished their food, and then fought over paying the bill.

"Friends don't pay for other friends' meals," Elena said, reaching for her purse.

"I don't know what kind of friends you have…" Damon replied, handing his card over to the waitress.

She gritted her teeth. "If you are going to pay every time then this 'lunch friend' thing is over."

A muscle ticked in his jaw. Elena was sure he had plenty of money, but that was not the point. This wasn't a lunch date, and his paying made her feel super awkward.

"I will pay for both of us next time," she decided, waiting for him to agree. Obviously seeing no other way out, Damon unhappily muttered a "Fine." She sat there silently, enjoying her small victory while they waited for the return of his card.

"Look at you, sitting there all smug," he said, shaking his head at her. "All because you get to pay tomorrow, when most women would never even offer."

"Well," she started, flashing him a sweet smile. "I'm not most women, now am I?"

"I'm beginning to see that," he replied, his gaze softening. He got his card back, tips the waitress, and they walked back to the office together, crossing the road side by side.

There was a brief silence.

"I have a feeling," Damon said eventually, turning to face her, "I'm going to enjoy this 'lunch friend' thing."

* * *

 **What do you guys/gals think about the lunch scene? I have always thought Damon has beautiful eyes:) I'm sure most of you will agree with me, LOL!  
**

 **I'm glad my readers are enjoying this new Delena story - I'm having fun writing it as well:) Thank you so much for the support and kind reviews.**


	4. Chapter 4

Everybody had somebody they regret dating, or wasting their time with. Elena didn't necessarily see it that way, because even failures were lessons; however, if she had to pick one ex-boyfriend she wish she never had to see again, it would be the man sitting on the other side of the restaurant, on a date with another woman. His name was Liam Davis, and he was a doctor. He was also a douche bag of epic proportions.

"At least you don't have to look at him," Caroline grumbled, pulling a face. "I can see him out the corner of my eye as I look at you."

Elena grinned, happy to have her back to him. "Rather you than me."

"Looks like he has put on weight," Caroline murmured, eyes dancing with glee. "It really is the small things in life."

Elena rolled eyes and picked up a spring roll, taking a bite out of it. "Not going to let him ruin my night."

It had been about a year since Elena and Liam were together, but for some reason he couldn't seem to let it go, even though he was the one who cheated with some older nurse. He still blew up her phone on occasion, even though she ignored any of his attempts at contact.

"How was work?" Elena asked, changing the subject away from all that was Liam. Caroline worked at the library, a job Elena envied.

"Good," Caroline said, her green eyes lighting up. "I did a few of the reading classes with the kids today. The toddler classes are the cutest."

"What do you do, just read to them?"

Elena couldn't imagine them paying any real attention.

"We have these huge books that I read to them, and we also do little games, songs and puzzles. They have a ball."

"Your job is way more fun than mine," Elena said, and not for the first time.

"Oh, God," Caroline suddenly whispered, dragging Elena's eyes from her spring roll to her friend.

"What?"

"He is coming over here."

Elena blinked. "Bullshit."

"I swear," Caroline said, eyes darting around to anywhere except behind Elena. "Three, two, one…"

"Elena."

Elena heard from over her shoulder. She gritted her teeth and turned her head towards Liam.

"Hey, Liam," Elena said, smiling awkwardly. "What are the chances, huh?"

Liam shoved his hands in his pockets and smiled at Caroline. "It is a small world, isn't it? Caroline, nice to see you again."

Lies.

Liam and Caroline had never got along, and probably never would.

"Uh-huh," Caroline murmured, lips thinning.

"I better get back to my date," Liam said as his blue eyes roam over Elena's face. "Nice to see you, Elena."

"You too," Elena said, waving then turning to face Caroline.

Caroline stared at her with wide eyes while pushing her blonde hair behind her ear. "Awkward."

"Just a little," Elena groaned, covering her face with her hands. "I know we weren't going to drink tonight, but I think we should order a bottle of wine."

"You think?" Caroline asked, looking ill at just the thought. "I feel like I'm still hung over from last night."

"Desperate times call for desperate wine measures."

"You drink, I will drive," Caroline suggested, arching her brow. "And don't worry, I won't judge you for drinking alone."

Elena rolled her eyes at her. "Thanks, Caroline. That's what friends are for, right?"

"Eww, he is kissing her," Caroline said, shuddering. "I don't know how you slept with him. I mean, yeah, he is good-looking, but he has this creepy vibe to him."

"That was not what you said the first night I brought him home," Elena reminded her friend, smirking. "I believe you asked him if he had a brother."

Caroline waved her hand in the air. "That was before. This is now. And now, I happen to think he is a serial killer in the making."

Elena couldn't stop laughing after she said that.

"Stop laughing," Caroline scowled. "He is looking over here, and so is his future victim!"

They finished their food, and Elena got through the evening without the wine.

Sometimes, miracles could happen.

x x x

"Are you just going to order the exact same thing every day? Try something new, Elena. Live a little, why don't you," Damon said the next day, looking down at Elena's hamburger in disgust.

"Oh, I live plenty," Elena replied, narrowing her eyes and popping a fry in her mouth. "I skipped my usual toast for breakfast and had some pancakes. If that isn't living on the wild side, I don't know what is."

Damon shook his head at her, eyes alighted with humour. "I don't know how you don't put on weight."

"Oh, I do," she corrected him. "It just goes straight to my ass and thighs."

She paused, cringing as she realised what she had just said. To her boss. She looked at his face, saw the amusement there, but still felt extremely awkward.

"Anyway…" she started, attempting to change the subject. "Tomorrow is my day off, so you are going to have to find someone else to have lunch with."

"Why do you get a weekday off?" Damon asked, pushing his finished plate aside. "I want an extra day off."

Elena rolled her eyes at him. "You have criminals to put away. Fortunately, for me, anyone can cover the front desk for one day."

"Like I have said before, if you weren't there running around for us, we would all walk around in circles, just bumping into each other," he said, making Elena laugh as she pictured it.

"I asked for the day off because it is my best friend's birthday, and we usually make a big deal of it. I was going to throw her a surprise party, but she said she didn't want anything big, so we are just going to have a day at the spa, getting pretty."

"If you get any prettier, I think we are going to have a problem," he remarked then looked away, clearing his throat.

Elena blinked. Wow. What did Damon Salvatore just say?

She was still dazed from that comment when Damon asked, "Who is covering for you?"

"Some temp named Krystal," she said, and his eyes widened before his gaze dropped to the table.

When he glanced back at her, she flashed him a knowing look. "Oh, do you know her?"

"No," he practically spit out, brows furrowing. "Why would I?"

Elena shrugged and looked down at her plate. "Debra seemed to know you pretty well."

"What did she say?" A scowl marred his handsome face. "I didn't date her, if that is what you are getting at here."

She shrugged again. "I didn't say that, you did," she retorted, wishing she had never brought it up. "She just mentioned that you are a bit of a ladies' man."

Damon smirked and studied her with an intensity that made her squeezed her thighs together. "And do you believe everything you hear?"

"No," she said slowly, but she would be stupid to disregard the information. "I mean, it is not even my business." She paused. "I shouldn't have said anything."

And here it was. Lines were getting crossed because Damon was confusing her by telling her that they were friends, by treating her as such. He might be becoming a friend, but she needed to remember that, first and foremost, she worked for him.

"You can say whatever you want, Elena," Damon said, something that looked like regret flashing through his eyes. "You are safe though."

"From what?"

"My so-called womanizing ways," he replied, lightening the mood by winking at her. "Are you going to eat those fries, or not?"

She pushed her plate towards him. "No, it is okay for you to eat them."

"I will work them off later tonight," he said, making her eyes widened.

Wait, what did he say?

Did he mean in bed? Jesus.

Elena imagined him naked, glistening with a sheen of sweat as he took his pleasure. Did it suddenly get hot in here? She shifted on her chair. At his deep laugh, she returned her eyes to him.

"What?" she asked, having trouble maintaining eye contact.

"At the gym," Damon said, smirking. "I will work it off at the gym tonight."

She blinked. "Oh, right. Of course."

Sometimes Elena thought she shouldn't be let out in public.

Looking at the time on her phone, she told him, "We should get back. You have to get to court, and I have a lot of emails to send out."

"Want to trade?" Damon asked, pulling out his wallet.

She raised her hand. "I'm paying, remember?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about," he said, placing money on the table and standing up. "You can get the bill next time."

"Damon—"

"We are late, Elena. We don't have time for this argument." He gently took her by her wrist and led her out of the café.

"Damon—"

"It is such a nice day today, isn't it?" he said, lifting his face up towards the sun. Momentarily distracted, Elena stared at his throat and jaw. How would it feel by running his fingers over his throat and jaw?

"Yeah, it is."

But that didn't change the fact that he paid when it was meant to be her turn to, and if Damon thought he was getting away with that, then he really didn't know her at all. They crossed the road together and headed towards their building. His fingers accidentally brushed hers, so she pulled her hand away, rubbing her fingers together.

The two of then hanging out? It wasn't a good idea. Not at all. But how was she going put a stop to it now?

"What are you thinking about so hard?" Damon asked, the deep sound of his voice like a caress.

"Nothing," Elena said, looking up at him. "Nothing at all."

He smiled, and her heart went just a little faster.

Yeah, she was completely screwed.

* * *

 **I'm so excited that my readers are enjoying this Delena story as much as I do:) Thank you for the kind reviews and support so far. I really appreciate them.  
**

 **I have always loved the chemistry and dynamics of Delena - this is what I'm hoping to bring out in this story. Just plain Delena, nothing else. And the last sentence - Elena was completely screwed. I think a lot of us would be screwed if we have a "lunch friend" thing with Damon, LOL!**


	5. Chapter 5

Elena opened her car door, about to drive home from work, when she saw Damon approaching.

"Hey," she greeted, shoving her handbag in the backseat.

"Hey," he replied, coming to stand next to her. "Do you want to come out for a drink with me and a few friends?"

Her eyebrows rose. "You are the 'after work drink' type?"

"I'm a lawyer," he said, running his hand through his hair. She wondered what it felt like. Soft, she bet.

"And all lawyers are alcoholics?" she teased, knowing the stereotype associated with his field.

Damon laughed, leaning against the back door of her car. She had to wonder if any of the dust from her car was now on his expensive black suit jacket. She really needed to wash it one of these days. "I have a drink every now and again. There is a bar around the corner. Are you coming or are you going?"

"Going," she said, not apologetic in the least. "Caroline is cooking dinner and waiting for me. Plus, the thought of meeting a new group of people and having to talk to them is my version of Hell."

Damon grinned, and reached out to touch the underneath of her chin with his index finger. "Nothing but honestly leaves those lips, does it?"

Elena swallowed hard and shrugged, unable to tear her eyes from his. What was it about him that had her so drawn to him? She needed to distance herself, because this wasn't going to end well. She couldn't exactly say that she couldn't have lunch with him anymore because she was a little too attracted to him though, so she had no idea what to do. Maybe she needed to find herself a distraction, such as another man to keep her mind preoccupied. And on that thought…

"I better get going."

Damon nodded and said, "Enjoy your day off tomorrow," holding the car door open as she slid in, closing it behind her.

As she drove away, she wondered what his friends were like. Who were the people he had chosen to surround himself with? She bet they were all lawyers, or men with other important jobs. She couldn't imagine herself standing around and making small talk with a group of them but, then again, she probably shouldn't judge people she hasn't even met.

She pushed Damon out of her mind and drove home, walking inside to Caroline's off-key singing as she danced around the kitchen, stopping to stir the pasta sauce.

"Smells good," Elena said, putting her handbag on the table before jumping up to sit on the countertop.

"You are finally here!" Caroline said, turning around and beaming at Elena. "I hope you are ready to have the best pasta of your life."

Caroline made the same pasta once a week, but Elena grinned and nodded.

Everyone needed a friend like Caroline in their life.

x x x

"Thank goodness you are back" was the first thing Damon said to Elena when she returned to work after her day off. He set papers on her desk and glanced up, eyes widened. "Krystal messed up my schedule yesterday. She double-booked clients, got my court time wrong, and now I don't know what the hell is going on."

"Relax," Elena said, grabbing the papers. She wrote down everywhere he needed to be today, and at what time, and handed them back to him. "Surely she didn't mess up that bad?"

"One of my clients had to wait for an hour," he complained, stretching his neck from side to side. "Meanwhile, how was your spa day?"

"Extremely relaxing." She smiled up at him. "It felt even better knowing that everyone else was working, made me appreciate it even more."

"Well, I'm glad you had fun," he grumbled, but then hesitantly smiled back at her. "Please don't leave us again though."

"Big baby," she teased. "I'm sure Krystal did fine. You should have gotten your schedule from me the day before." The phones rang, so she said, "Excuse me."

Damon waved as she picked it up, and she watched him disappeared into his office.

A few hours later, a man appeared in front of Elena's desk. "Can I help you?" she asked. He was handsome—looked to be in his thirties, with dark hair and eyes.

"I have a meeting with Damon Salvatore," he said, shifting on his feet.

She looked down at the schedule and nodded. "Yes, please have a seat, sir. He will be with you shortly."

At least she hoped Damon would, because he was still in his office with his last client. After ten minutes, she called his office phone.

"Yes?" Damon answered after a few rings.

"Mr Salvatore, your client Mason Lockwood is here waiting for you," she told him.

"Be right out," he said, hanging up.

His office door opened, and his other client walked out. She was pretty, but Elena didn't think anything of it until she saw Damon himself, his hair and clothes looking a little dishevelled.

He wouldn't, would he?

Damon avoided her eyes as he told Mr Lockwood to come into his office, while she was left standing there with a million different questions running through her mind. Did Damon have sex with one of his clients? In his office? Surely, he wouldn't. Elena was pretty sure that was illegal, or something. Maybe they just kissed? Or maybe nothing happened at all.

Why did she even care? That was his business, not hers. She was just here to handle reception, after all.

She stared at his closed door.

Maybe this was what Debra was referring to. Maybe Damon did sleep with all of his hot clients. Ooh, maybe he accepted payment in the form of sexual favours. Okay, that was a stretch, but come on. He never denied being a ladies' man, although that was putting it nicely. Half an hour later, when Mr Lockwood walked out, Damon followed him, shook his hand, and then turned to her as his client stepped into the elevator.

Elena watched him.

He stared back at her.

"What?" he asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest, almost daring her to say something.

"Nothing," Elena said, pursing her lips to stop herself from saying anything further.

"No honesty this time?"

"I honestly think it is none of my business," she said, looking at her phone to avoid his gaze.

"Elena—"

Alaric decided to walk in at that moment, hurrying over to her desk. "Elena, can you cancel my three o'clock please? Reschedule it for tomorrow, if you can."

"No problem," she said, getting right to it. Damon headed back into his office, but not before sparing her a lingering glance, one she pretended she didn't notice. The rest of the day passed slowly, and she slipped out before she had a chance of running into him again. She didn't know what to say to him, mainly because she didn't like what she was feeling. If Damon had something to do with that woman…

How could she still be friends with him when it clearly annoyed her that he would do something like that? But they were just friends, so she had no reason to get angry.

She needed to close herself off to anything to do with Damon Salvatore.

x x x

Elena didn't know how she had let Caroline talked her into a double date, but here she was. Awkward as ever, she was spending her Saturday night sitting in a restaurant next to a guy named Aaron, while Caroline snuggled up to his friend Wes. Caroline met Wes online, on some dating app, and Aaron was his best friend. Apparently, this meant that she and Aaron were stuck with each other while Caroline and Wes flirted all night. Elena loved her best friend, but this was definitely the first and last time she would agree to something like this.

"Elena loves watching sports, don't you, Elena?" Caroline told the table, maybe trying to incite some conversation on her friend's end.

"Uhh, sure," Elena said, forcing a smile. "I will watch pretty much anything: cricket, basketball, even tennis."

"That's hot," Aaron replied, annoying Elena further with each word he spoke. She lifted her vodka and orange juice to her lips, flashing Caroline a look that only a best friend or sister could read, one that clearly said, 'You are going to pay for this.'

Caroline shrugged and took a sip of her own drink, then turned to Wes, giving him her best bedroom eyes.

Turning to Aaron, who was already watching her, Elena tried to be a better date, even though she already knew she was never going to see him again. Maybe they could be friends, especially if Caroline and Wes ended up dating, but probably not, because she couldn't even hold a proper conversation with him. Some people you just clicked with, and others you couldn't; it was just the way of the world.

"So, where are we going after this?" Aaron asked, winking at her. "Maybe we could head back to yours for more drinks and a movie, or something?"

Elena couldn't think of anything worse right now.

She looked to Caroline, panic filling her, but Caroline was too busy giggling at something Wes said for only her ears. She ignored Aaron's question, finished her drink and stared longingly into the empty glass. Aaron didn't offer to get her another one, so she asked if she could get anyone a drink before heading to the bar herself.

When Elena heard her name whispered by a familiar voice, she turned to her right and looked into the blue-grey eyes of none other than Damon himself. He was wearing jeans with a grey V-neck t-shirt, and it was the first time she had seen him in casual attire. Not going to lie—it looked good on him.

"Hey," she said, automatically smiling. "What are you doing here?"

Damon lifted his glass of amber liquid in the air. "Came out for a drink with a friend of mine. I saw you before, but I didn't want to interrupt you on your date."

He emphasised the word 'date', and Elena glanced at Aaron, wondering what Damon thought of him.

"Yeah." She grimaced, before continuing, "About that. Trust me, any interruptions are welcome."

"Not going so well?" he asked, calling over one of the bartenders. "What do you want to drink, Elena?"

"Vodka orange, please," she told him, listening as he ordered her drink for her. "It was a blind date," she admitted, puffing out a breath. "I got dragged into it because Caroline apparently really likes his friend, so here I am. The things you do for friends, hey?"

The bartender brought her drink over. Damon paid for it, and then slid it over to her.

"Thank you," Elena said, remembering that she still needed to get him back for paying for lunch. "Where is your friend?"

She looked around the bar, seeing a few different men and wondering which one of them was his friend. She realised that if she stayed here and chatted with Damon any longer, she was being seriously rude to Aaron, but if she had her way, she would stick with Damon all night instead.

"He is the one in the black shirt," he said, nodding to a dark-haired man, who was currently talking to a pretty blonde.

"Nice," she muttered, eyebrows raising. Damon's friend looked like a handsome guy, at least from what she could see. Good build. Nice hair. Tall.

"Nice," Damon repeated with a hint of a growl in his tone. "Are you checking out my friend right in front of me?"

Elena grinned and said, "I could have been talking about the woman."

Damon laughed, putting his glance down and turning his body to her, closing the space between them. "Why don't you get rid of your date, and spend the rest of the night with me?"

She licked her lips. "That would be kind of rude, don't you think?"

"But it would save you from a shitty night," he added, grinning wolfishly. "I will introduce you to Enzo…after I tell him to keep his grubby hands away from you."

"And why would you tell him that?" she asked boldly, bringing her glass to her lips. Arching her brow, she waited for his response. She really hoped the red lipstick she was wearing stayed put and didn't decide to smudge all over her mouth.

"Because you seem like a nice girl," he said, lowering his gaze down her body. "And you are beautiful, Elena. I don't think you have any idea just how much."

Her breath hitched as the words left his lips. His gaze locked with her, and a few things passed between them in a silent conversation. They acknowledged their attraction for one another, but they also agreed not to act on it.

At least, that was what Elena thought passed between them.

When Damon reached out and cupped her cheek with his hand, she realised she might have misunderstood.

"Elena," Caroline said, coming up behind Elena, saving her from whatever Damon was about to tell her. "Can you please come back to the table?" She lowered her voice. "Aaron was just staring at you talking to this guy." She looked up at Damon and waved. "Hello, by the way."

"Hi," Damon said, seemingly on the verge of laughter.

Caroline turned back to Elena, whispering again. "And it is really awkward."

Elena rolled her eyes. "I will be there in a minute."

Caroline kissed her cheek, and then wiped it, where Elena assumed she left a lipstick mark. "And by the way, they are both coming back to ours after this." She stepped away before Elena could elbow her in the ribs. "Love you!"

When Caroline went back to the table of hell, Elena glanced at Damon and sighed unhappily. "I better go."

She noticed his amused expression had now hardened into something else, his jaw tightened and his blue-grey eyes narrowed. "What does she mean they are both going back to your house? You are going to bring that guy you don't even like home with you?"

Oh.

That was why he was angry? Because he thought she was bringing Aaron back to her house?

"I'm not going to sleep with him," Elena said, a little defensively. "We will just watch a movie, have a drink or something, and then I'm going to bed. It is not like I want to," she added, crossing her arms over her chest. "I have to take one for the team…The very last one I will be taking when it comes to Caroline and guys."

Damon didn't look impressed with her explanation. "If you bring him back to your house, he is going to assume you are going to sleep with him. I know, I'm a guy."

And presumably a man-whore.

"Well, what do I do then? I can't tell him to go home. What's the bet he gets all defensive and does what most guys do in that situation."

"Which is?"

"He will be all, 'Oh, I just wanted to hang out as friends, that's all. Don't just assume all men want you.' Or some other asshole line like that to try and make me feel like a dickhead, when really we all know if I asked him to join me in my bed there is no way in hell he would have said no."

Elena took a deep breath after her rant.

Damon pinched the bridge of his nose, like she had suddenly given him a headache or some problems.

"What?" she asked at the same time he said, "You—"

They both paused.

Then he straightened and said, "Well, if there is a party at your house tonight, I guess that means I can come along too. We are all just friends hanging out after all, right?"

And that was how Damon Salvatore ended up at her house.

* * *

 **I'm so excited! I can't believe there are more than 50 reviews in only a few days since I have uploaded this Delena story. Thank you so much to all of you who have been very supportive and kind:)**

 **I'm really having fun writing this Delena story because it is only about Delena, LOL!**

 **Hopefully you will enjoy this chapter too:)**


	6. Chapter 6

Elena didn't really know how to act when Damon said good-bye to his friend, Enzo, and followed her back to her house. Aaron and Wes followed them too. Only she could get into these situations.

"Is the house clean?" she asked Caroline in a panic. She couldn't have people over, especially Damon, if the house wasn't spotless.

"The house is always clean," Caroline replied drolly, and then looked over at Elena. "So, let me get this straight. Your boss, who is a mega babe, is coming to our house to cock-block you from Aaron?"

"I don't know what this is," Elena groaned, closing her eyes and laying her head back. "Damon is my boss, sort of, but we kind of became friends recently. I don't know what his deal is."

"Oh, I do," Caroline said, pulling into their driveway. "He wants you."

Elena frowned. "No, he doesn't."

"Then he doesn't want Aaron to have you." Caroline paused for dramatic effect. "Because he wants you but he is fighting it."

"Maybe he just feels sorry for me because I was on the most boring date of my life," Elena grumbled, turning to look at her friend. "And trust me, I have been on some bad ones. You know this, I have told you about all of them in excruciating detail."

When they got out of the car, Elena rushed inside to make sure the place was Damon-worthy; Caroline stood outside while their cars pulled up, being a nice host. Damon's car was probably worth more than their house, which they were renting and didn't even own.

When the house passed her inspection, Elena walked to the door just as Damon entered.

"You are really here," she blurted, giggling a little nervously. "In my house."

"Yes, I am." He smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "You know, you don't live that far from me."

"I don't?"

"No, I'm just about ten minutes away."

"Damon, what are you doing here?" she whispered to him. "If this is about Aaron, he is only going to stay for a drink, then leave. You don't have to worry about me."

"Maybe I just want to spend some time with you," he said, squeezing her shoulder. He moved ahead of her and made himself comfy on the couch, just as Caroline, Wes and Aaron walked in. Aaron didn't look happy—and with good reason, Elena guessed.

"Can I get you a drink?" Elena asked Damon, who looked completely relaxed.

"No, I'm good, thanks," he replied, turning on the TV and clearly making himself at home.

Elena looked to Caroline, needing her to make the situation less awkward. Caroline was the type of person anyone could get on with, because she was friendly, easy to talk to and not shy. She told the men to sit down, joined them, before officially introducing everyone. "Aaron and Wes, this is Damon, by the way. Damon, Aaron and Wes."

The men murmured their hellos.

Elena mumbled something and headed into the kitchen, grabbing herself a bottle of water, then returning to the disaster that was her night. There was a spare spot next to Damon and another next to Aaron, and it might make her a total bitch, but she took the one next to Damon.

"What are we watching?" she asked Damon, cracking open her bottle of water and taking a sip. "Are you sure no one wants a drink or anything? I can bring out some snacks if anyone is hungry."

Elena could at least try to be a good host; the last thing she wanted to do was come off as rude when really she was just an introvert who would rather not be in this situation right now. She was not drunk enough to be happy and social, and Damon was here. And he was the real reason why she had agreed to the date with Aaron, because she was on 'mission don't think about Damon,' which she had obviously failed.

Wes and Caroline wanted more alcohol, so Caroline brought out some wine and beer, and they all sat there watching some movie that Damon had picked, one that seemed way too serious for a drinks/date night. Elena's arm brushed his. She felt the warmth of his skin and wanted nothing more than to melt into him, but she didn't. Instead, she sat there a little stiffly, smelling his spicy cologne and wishing that for one night she could pretend that she didn't work with him, so she could just bring him back to her room and let him have his way with her. Once Aaron went home, of course.

Oh, right. Aaron.

She had completely forgotten about Aaron.

She glanced over at him to see his eyes on her, not the TV. Caroline and Wes, who were cuddled together and completely oblivious to anything else going on, started whispering to each other. If they left her alone with Damon and Aaron, she would have to commit murder. Surely, Aaron would take the hint and leave though, right? He couldn't plan to stay here all night, giving her and Damon dirty looks. She did feel bad, but not all dates worked out well.

 _You win some, and you lose some._ That was what Elena believed.

Aaron couldn't expect her to act how Caroline was around Wes, because there was just no chemistry there whatsoever. Besides, no man could compete with Damon, as much as it pained her to admit. He was too…whatever he was. Just…everything. Everything a woman like her could possibly want in a man.

Damon casually wrapped his arm around her, and she finally got to bury her head in his chest. Elena knew she was being rude right now, but she hoped her actions would make Aaron leave. He wouldn't take the hint, and she felt like if she should have just been a honest asshole from the start, instead of nice, she wouldn't be in this situation right now. She stopped thinking about all the reasons that this was inappropriate and decided to enjoy the moment, closing her eyes, not caring about the movie. She made a soft moaning noise against his chest, and she knew Damon heard it, because his arm tightened around her.

Damn.

What were they doing now?

They were skating on thin ice right now. Elena knew it, and she knew that he did too.

She couldn't believe Damon was here, in her house, and she was in his arms. Like they were a couple. Like she was more than just his work colleague. What the hell was she doing? So much for not thinking about it. She kept her eyes closed, and eventually she fell half-asleep.

Aaron left.

Caroline and Wes headed back to her room.

And she and Damon stayed here, cuddled together on the couch, wrapped around each other. She lifted her head and looked at him. His eyes were closed, but they opened when he felt her moving. Without a word, she slid off him and offered him her hand.

He took it.

Elena led him through the dark hall, into her room. He took off his shoes— she had slid hers off earlier—and they both slipped underneath the sheets. She usually slept without a bra, but she didn't dare take it off. She didn't dare to move at all, except to lay her head on his chest once more.

Damon kissed her forehead, and she stopped breathing.

Then, even though all she wanted to do was jump him, to kiss him, to feel him everywhere, to have him pound into her, she listened to her head over her body.

And she went to sleep.

And Damon, he did the same.

x x x

When Elena woke up, Damon was already awake.

She lifted her head and looked at his face. She still couldn't believe they spent the night in her bed, cuddling. How did this even happen? What should she do now? She had never thought she would be in this situation, but here she was. Should she be offended that he didn't make a move on her last night, or grateful? She really didn't know.

She was glad she wouldn't have to sit at work, thinking about how she spent one night with him, but they did still cuddle all night, which was, in a way, even more complicated than a one-night stand. They didn't have sex, but they still wanted to be here, with each other. That reeked of something more confusing than a case of out of control lust. She noticed him staring at the wall, brows furrowing in concentration.

"What are you thinking about so hard?" she asked him, her husky morning voice making an appearance.

Damon looked down at her, his lip twitching. "Just trying to remember the last time I slept next to a woman without having sex with her."

"Charming," Elena muttered, closing her eyes again. What should she do now? Should she say, 'Thanks for the cuddle session, bye, I will see you at work tomorrow'? That didn't sound right. Right. Coffee. She would offer him some coffee. "I'm going to make some coffee. Do you want some?"

"Yes, please," he rumbled, but pulled her back into bed when she tried and moved. "Stop overthinking, Elena. Nothing happened."

She knew that nothing happened—she was there—but still, it was not like it was normal to do what they did. Who just had casual sleepovers with their boss? She was probably the first.

Damon ran his hand through her hair, almost roughly, but it felt good. He massaged her scalp a little, and then let her go.

"The bathroom is through that door," she told him, pointing. "Let me know if I can get you anything." She paused, committing his 'I just woke up' look to memory, before she rose from the bed. "I will go make the coffee now."

Elena headed into the kitchen, wondering if Wes also stayed the night. Damon came in just as the coffee was ready; she handed him his and sat down on one of the stools by the breakfast table.

"Any plans for today?" she asked, inwardly cringing when she realised it sounded like she was asking if he wanted to do something.

"It is my niece's second birthday," he replied, bringing the mug to his lips. "Why? Want to come? We can cuddle there too. I'm sure my brother won't mind."

Elena almost spit out her coffee, then threw him a dirty look and groaned. "I personally think it is too soon to joke about."

He grinned. "You are overreacting."

"You are under-reacting."

"Well then, we even each other out," Damon said, sitting down next to her. "We didn't have sex, Elena, and trust me, I don't think you understand just how much willpower that took on my behalf."

"I'm going to pretend none of this happened," she said out loud, staring into her coffee. "Tomorrow is a new day. A new day not to do crazy thing like this."

"Are you always so dramatic?" he asked, his expression softening as he looked at her.

"Yes."

"If you are going to act like this, we may as well just have sex," he stated matter-of-factly, taking a drink then putting his mug down. He turned to her and pushed her hair back behind her ear. "You are beautiful in the morning."

"No one is beautiful in the morning," she responded, feeling a little dazed as he stared into her eyes.

"You are," he said softly, then stood and kissed her forehead. "I better get going. I will see you at work tomorrow."

"Bye," she murmured, watching him as he walked out.

She sat by herself, finishing her coffee, contemplating her life right now. The bottom line was that they didn't have sex, so maybe Damon was right. Why stress over something that she couldn't go back and change? Elena thought what was haunting her the most was that she didn't want to change it.

Damon Salvatore cuddled like a champ.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the support and kind words. I can't tell you how glad am I to know that you gguys/gals like this story:) i promise i will try my very best to bring out the chemistry between Damon and Elena!**


	7. Chapter 7

Elena arrived at work early the next morning, armed with coffee and a determination to act normal. When Damon arrived, she smiled and waved hello, then continued sending emails. He stopped at her desk, studied her for a moment, and then said, "Good morning."

"Morning," she replied, lifting her gaze when he didn't seem to be going anywhere.

"Are we good?" Damon asked, scanning her face. He was wearing a blue shirt today, and it suited him, but she preferred him in white, or black like he was on Saturday night. Yeah, him in that V-neck t-shirt…

Elena nodded.

"I will see you at lunch then," he said, tapping his hand on her desk before heading to his office. She watched him disappear then returned her attention to her laptop. Maybe Damon was right, and she was overreacting. No one else knew what had happened, and no one else would know.

It was the perfect crime, wasn't it?

Elena smiled to herself and got on with her work. When lunchtime came around, Damon appeared at her desk.

"I'm starving, you ready?"

She stood and grabbed her bag. "Yeah, I'm ready."

"I thought we could try somewhere new today," he said, glancing at her to gauge her reaction. "What do you say?"

"Yeah, okay," she said, shrugging. They walked side by side to the elevator. He gestured for her to go in before him, and then he pressed the ground floor button. The doors shut and they turned to look at one another, a strange tension filling the confined space.

Elena cleared her throat, thinking of something to say. "How was your niece's birthday party?"

"Good," he replied, smiling to himself. "It was a Disney princess-themed party. All the men had to dress up as princes."

Her eyes widened as she pictured Damon dressed as a prince. "Please tell me you have photo evidence of that."

"I do—" he smirked "—but you aren't seeing it."

"Why not?" she asked as the elevator came to a stop. They exited and walked outside, the sunlight and light breeze hitting her skin. "You have to show me, Damon. You can't just say that and not back it up with a picture."

"Why do you want to see it so badly?" Damon asked, putting his hand on the small of her back to lead her in the right direction.

 _Because it sounds like a fantasy?_

 _Because I will probably think about it next time I'm alone in my room?_

But she was definitely not going to be saying that out loud.

"I'm just curious," she said, trying to play it off. "If you don't want to show me, then fine. I won't show you the pic of me dressed up as a Disney princess, which was the theme for my twenty-first birthday last year."

He stopped in his tracks and looked down at her with a narrowed gaze. "Which princess?"

"Jasmine," Elena replied, grinning. "I so have the long dark hair."

"I know," he said, sounding strained. He reached out and touched a lock. "It is long and thick and sexy like hell."

She pulled her hair out of his fingers. Damon thought her hair was sexy?

"This is escalating," she stated, walking straight ahead. Damon fell into line next to her. "So, where is this place?"

"We need to turn right up ahead," he told her, once again putting his hand on her lower back. If anyone saw them, they would think they were a couple. That was what it must look like, them walking together, his hand on her. Their cute banter. Except they weren't that, or anything close to it.

"Here," Damon said, leading her towards an elegant, exclusive restaurant in town.

Elena rolled eyes. "Of course this is the place you would choose. Do we even have time to eat here?"

"No one else is even in the office." Damon smirked. "They won't know how long we take."

"Yeah, but no one will be there to answer the phone," she pointed out.

"They can leave a message, and you can get back to them," he said as he opened the door for her. "After you."

Elena walked in and looked around. "This is where you usually go?"

Damon shook his head. "Nope. I have never actually been here before, it is new. I wanted to check it out though."

A waiter led them past banks of fresh flowers and around a fanciful white trellis to a table that was far enough away from the ebony grand piano in the centre of the room to enjoy the music, but not so close that it hindered conversation.

"Would you like a drink?" he asked her when they were seated.

"No, thank you, just ice water."

"If you get the burger and fries, I will never speak to you again," he murmured, glancing at her over his menu with a grin.

"Don't try and change me, Damon," she teased. "They don't even have a burger option. What kind of place is this, anyway?"

"A good one," he said, putting the menu down. "What do you want to have for lunch?"

"Maybe something exotic?" she asked, wiggling her brows. "Since we are such rebels as of late."

Damon watched her for a second, his expression blank, then he threw his head back and laughed.

Hard.

"What the hell is so funny?" Elena asked as he hugged his stomach, which she hoped was starting to hurt from all his laughter. "Do you want to share the joke?"

"You," he choked out, trying to contain himself. "You….Elena."

"Lawyer who can't even get his words out," she grumbled, still waiting for him to explain.

"You think me coming over and cuddling you, with not so much as a kiss, is being a rebel? Hell, Elena, you kill me."

"I'm about to," she gritted through clenched teeth.

Well, it wasn't really rebellious, but it was not like it was something she could go around telling people either. Like, 'Oh, Damon stayed at my house, but don't worry, nothing happened.' People would talk, judge and look down on her if it got out. So yes, it might not be worthy of the term in his eyes, but she had always been a good girl, and this was her version of being a rebel.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," he continued, reaching over and taking her hand in his. "If they try to lock you up, I will get you out. No matter what."

Damon said it with a straight face which made Elena wanted to laugh, but she refrained. "Are you done, Damon?"

"Maybe." He grinned, showing off his straight white teeth. "Have you decided what you want?"

"Whatever is most expensive," she said, pursing her lips.

He laughed more.

"Hear from Aaron?" he asked after they had ordered.

"No, but Caroline and Wes have hit it off, so I will probably be seeing him around."

"Hmmm."

"Hmmm, what?"

"Nothing," he said, smiling and thanking the waitress who poured them some water. When she left, Elena leaned over the table and asked, "What happened the other day?"

"You are going to have to be more specific than that," Damon said, leaning back and watching her expectantly.

"You came out of your office looking a little…dishevelled, right after your client, Lucy, left your office," Elena whispered, deciding that they had gone past the point of boundaries. "Did you do something with her?"

"Like give her legal advice?"

"Like having sex with her," she blurted out, getting straight to the point.

"And if I did?" he asked, taking a sip of water.

Elena narrowed her eyes. "She is your client."

"Do you work for human resources now?" he joked, then put the glass down and leaned forward. "I didn't have sex with her, Elena. I would need more time for that than one thirty minute appointment."

She swallowed. "But something did happen."

She was not stupid. She knew something did happen. She also knew it was not her business, but she was curious. This man went from someone she checked out when he wasn't looking to someone she saw and interacted with every day. Someone who slept in her bed. Someone she now felt comfortable enough with to ask personal questions.

He licked his lips and looked away. "She hit on me. Kissed me and ran her hands all over me, which was probably why I looked a little dishevelled."

"Why would she do that?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

"You might not believe this, but I'm not completely distasteful to some women," he replied, flashing her a displeased look.

Elena rolled her eyes. "I mean, surely it is not normal for a woman to come in for legal advice and then hit on the lawyer. There has to be a reason, or an explanation."

Damon grimaced, and she knew she was right. "I had slept with her before, years ago. Not when she was my client."

"I see," she said, finally piecing it all together. "And she thought she would just pick up where you left off?"

"Something like that," he said, then turned the tables on her. "Would you have slept with Aaron if I wasn't there that night?"

"Hell no," she responded vehemently. "I didn't even sleep with you and I think you are one of the sexiest men I have ever laid my eyes on, so why would I sleep with him? He is not even my type."

She cleared her throat when she realised what she had just blurted out.

She needed a filter. Desperately. Obviously, she couldn't keep her mouth shut.

"That's quite a compliment," he murmured. "Especially coming from you."

"I didn't mean to say that." She cringed and looked around the restaurant, hoping their waitress would choose this moment to arrive with their food.

"I'm glad you did," he said, eyes finally meeting hers again. "I think you are absolutely stunning, Elena. You have a rare, natural beauty that any man would be drawn to."

Now it was Elena's time to look away, especially when she felt the heat rushed to her cheeks. "Uhh, thanks, Damon." She changed the subject as soon as she could. "Are you sure we won't get in trouble for taking a longer lunch?"

"Yes." He certainly sounded sure. "And, by the way, you are cute when you blush."

"Stop it."

"I will try."

"Try harder."

The waitress arrived with their food, and Elena had to admit that Damon's beef dish looked much more appetising than her pasta.

"Do you want a bite?" he asked, forking a piece for her.

She nodded. He reached over the table, putting the food in front of her lips, waiting for her to open them. She obliged, and soon the delicious taste of the beef hit her tongue. "It is so good."

"I know," he said, smirking.

"Do you want some of mine?" she asked, a little shyly.

Damon nodded, so Elena did the same as he did to her. He chewed thoughtfully and swallowed, then smirked again. "Yeah, mine is better. Just order whatever I do next time."

"Jerk," she muttered, making him laugh.

"Do you want to trade?"

Her eyes widened. "You would do that?"

"Sure," he said, and then added, "For you."

They stared into each other's eyes.

Damn.

It was Elena who looked away first. "It is okay, the pasta is good too."

"Elena," he said a little hesitantly, making her looked up from her food.

"Yeah?"

"Nothing." He put his fork down, seeming a little frustrated. A muscle ticked in his jaw.

"Tell me, Damon. You know whatever you say stays between us," she told him, encouraging him to speak whatever was on his mind.

There was a brief pause.

"I like you," he started eventually. "But I don't date; I'm just not that kind of guy. You deserve more than I could ever offer but, at the same time, I can't stay away. So, I don't know what the hell to do."

"Giving me honesty back, huh?" she teased, trying to lighten the tension between them.

"I like you too," Elena admitted in a small voice. "I don't know, Damon. We work together, so everything would have to be in secret. And what do you mean you don't date?"

"I just have different views on the whole dating and love thing," he said, now looking at his plate. "I don't know, I'm just not a traditional kind of guy. If you want commitment, marriage and children, I'm not the man to even consider that with."

"I do want those things…eventually," she replied, wondering why his views were as such in the first place. But that didn't mean she didn't want him, whatever he had to offer, for now. She was not thinking of the future, she was thinking of the present. She didn't want to be married right now.

"If you want some fun then I'm your guy," he said, flashing his charming smile. "I just don't want you to get hurt. I want you to know what you will be getting into."

Still confused by what Damon meant exactly, Elena decided to focus on the 'him being unable to stay away' part. He liked her. She liked him. It shouldn't be more complicated than that, but it was.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything," he murmured, glancing down at the table. "Let's just enjoy our lunch."

She didn't even feel like eating anymore after that, her stomach full of butterflies, but she tried.

Damon Salvatore liked her.

She tried not to smile.

Back at work, Caroline was sending Elena screenshots of something Wes sent her, telling her how cute Wes was, how nice and different Wes was from other men. Elena was torn between rolling her eyes and hoping her friend was right this time. She didn't want to see her best friend get hurt again, although when Caroline jumped into things, it was almost inevitable. She didn't want to act like a bitch though; she wanted to support her friend and be there for her friend no matter what happened.

Damon was gone for the rest of the day, which gave her time to think about what had happened at lunch. She didn't expect him to say any of those things; even though she knew there was a connection between them, that didn't mean they were going to explore it. Now that he had brought it up though, was it an option? When Damon said he didn't date, what did that mean exactly? Elena needed to ask him again, to be clearer. Maybe he just didn't like the label, because their lunch date today felt like an actual date, not just a lunch between two people who happened to work together. Maybe she was just imagining something that was not there. She didn't know how Caroline did it; this dating world was going to drive her mad.

Or not dating, as it were.

Damn.


	8. Chapter 8

Elena woke up feeling anxious and excited the next morning. She was excited to see Damon again. But she was also anxious because she had no idea what she was getting herself into.

"Good morning, Mr Salvatore," she said politely as she saw Damon walking into the office at eight.

"Good morning, Elena. You are bright and cheerful today," Damon said with amusement. He was holding a cup of coffee and he brought it to his mouth. She got lost in his lips for a split-second before she reminded herself to get a grip.

"Of course, sir. It is a pleasure to be here. What is not to be cheerful about?"

"I guess that is an honest trait." He studied her carefully. "Have you forgotten you can call me Damon in the office?"

"Sure," she replied quickly before looking at her laptop. "Your meeting is scheduled at eight-thirty."

Damon walked into his room without saying a word.

It was hard to concentrate on her work when her body was trembling at the thought of him. Damon's mouth kept popping into her mind. His face. His hands. His eyes. Everything about him. She realized she was falling deeper in the sexual tension that was so obviously between them.

After four hours of continuous working on her laptop, Elena stood up and stretched. Her legs were cramping, and her neck was getting sore from staring at the same thing.

She let out a moan as she stretched her arms over her head. "Ah, god," she moaned again as her body completely melted into the stretch, feeding her muscles the relief they needed.

"Jesus. Christ."

She heard a growl from behind her. She quickly turned around and saw Damon standing near her desk; his arms were crossed as he studied her. "I never knew a moan could sound so hot."

Elena grinned as she moved the chair out of her way. She had imagined his coming at her like a wild tiger filled with hunger and need, as he grabbed her and then placed her on top of the desk. She got lost in the thought of him running his hands up her legs, and soon up her skirt. The thought made her forget reality, and soon she was just standing there staring at him as she clenched her legs tighter together.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, changing courses from the very dirty fantasy she was having.

"Um, yes. Sure," she stumbled. She mentally kicked herself for sounding weak in front of her. She needed to stay in control, keep her ground if she was going to continue doing this.

"Why don't we have lunch here in the office and I will order us in some food."

"Sounds great. Thanks."

"What are you in the mood for?" His voice was low, almost a whisper.

On top. Doggy style. Bent over the office desk. Reverse Cowgirl. Basically, anything that involved Damon Salvatore…

"Um..." Elena cleared her throat, feeling uneasy. "Anything is fine with me." She nervously shuffled some documents around, pretending to organize them.

"Sounds good." His face was expressionless as he turned and walked out.

Ten minutes later, Elena walked into his office with two cups of coffee. He motioned for her to take a seat across from him, as he sat behind his desk.

"So, how long are we going on with this 'lunch friend' thing?" he asked suddenly. He was staring intently at her as if he could see right through her.

Elena raised her eyebrows at him. "What did you mean by you don't date?"

There was a brief pause.

He sighed. "If you want to have some fun, I'm your guy, Elena."

"And you want to have fun with me."

He leaned forward in his chair in complete seriousness. "Yes, I do."

"You don't want a commitment."

"No."

"You want a casual sexual relationship. No string attached."

Damon said nothing.

"So, why did you bring me to a nice restaurant for lunch yesterday?" she asked. She was confused. "Didn't you consider it a date?"

His jaw tightened. "Elena, don't do this…"

She gripped the chair and stood up. "I think I need some fresh air."

"Wait."

Elena made her way to the door but she felt his hand on her arm as she reached the door. She froze in her tracks, her back to his chest. She could feel his heartbeat racing—it matched hers. Her skin heated as his touch seared her flesh. The way his hand was still gripping her arm sent a shiver down her body making it nearly impossible to not relax against his body. Her body shivered and she knew he could feel it.

"Elena, I said wait," Damon growled.

He turned her around, and Elena gasped at the closeness. Her eyes skimmed his body, going from his hips to his chest, and up to his face. He looked much bigger close up, his muscles more defined as she got a better look at him.

"I'm waiting," she managed to say. She didn't want him to know how he affected her, but part of her knew it was too late—he knew.

"Don't go. Our lunch will be here shortly," he pleaded.

His eyes went soft as he spoke. She felt paralysed to his voice, so all she could do was nod. He led her back to the chair in front of his desk. She watched intently as he took his seat back.

The mood lightened once their food arrived, and Damon began telling her more about his previous cases he had dealt with. Elena asked him questions, and he happily answered them.

"This is starting to feel like an interrogation," Damon said once they had finished their food. "I think it is time for twenty questions—lightening round style."

Elena flashed him a confused look, and he laughed. "I'm going to ask you questions as fast as I can, and you have to answer them all as fast as you can."

"That sounds painful." She giggled. "But I will try it."

He smirked as he casually placed his arms on top of his desk in front of her. "Okay, ready?"

She nodded. "Bring it on."

He locked eyes with her as he begins his questions. "Favourite food?"

"Italian."

"Favourite colour?"

"Red."

"Favourite thing to wear to bed?"

"A tank top and shorts."

"First boyfriend's name?"

"Matt."

"Age when you lost your virginity?"

Elena tried not to laugh at the absurd questions because Damon was taking this so seriously, so she matched his expression. She folded her hands on top of the desk and locked eyes with him as she answered.

"Seventeen."

He smirked.

"Favourite position?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"No breaking the rules, Elena." Damon rolled the sound of her name with seduction, making sure she listened to his made-up game.

Elena swallowed.

"The roller coaster."

She had read an article about it in Cosmo, and it sounded like something that would get Damon's attention.

And it did.

He raised an eyebrow at her, and she could tell he wanted to ask her what exactly that was—because only girls really knew names of positions—so she was assuming he was clueless on what exactly she meant.

"Don't think we are not getting back to that one." He smirked.

"We will see."

He laughed.

"Worst grade you ever got?"

"B+."

"Goody-to-shoe," he jibed. Elena just shook her head at him.

"The most interesting place you have ever had sex before?"

Elena saw the game he was playing. One or two innocent questions before he popped in a sexual one.

"At work."

She instantly closed her eyes the second the words came out. Now Damon would get ideas in his head for sure.

She heard him swallow. Hard.

She opened her eyes and saw he was adjusting himself.

Damn, that was hot to see Damon all sexually frustrated. It was hot seeing what she did to him, and suddenly her body and heart were no longer fighting. They were on the same level—matching heartbeats and sexual desires.

She grinned and leaned over the desk to where his hands were resting. "Are you all right over there?"

"I'd be better if I wasn't rock hard getting blue balls," he responded bluntly.

She felt heat in her cheeks but she kept her stance, not wanting to show how much that affected her. "Hm...I could Google some of those bikini bimbos and get their numbers. I'm sure one of them could help you out with your...um...issue."

Damon walked around the desk and aggressively grabbed her hand. "Do you want to know what you have been doing to me since the second I first met you?"

"You are blunt," she blurted out.

"Well, why shouldn't I be? When I know what I want—who I want—I go for it," he said in all seriousness.

Her heart practically stopped at his confession. She was unsure how to handle him—if she could handle him.

Then again, she was insanely attracted to him. Who wouldn't be attracted to Damon Salvatore?

She could feel Damon's face close to hers. She licked her lips in anticipation, but before his mouth touched hers, his cell phone rang, alarming both of them and making them immediately came apart.

"Damn," he growled.

He searched for his phone in his pocket and cursed again when he saw the name on the screen.

"What?" he barked. "This is not a good time."

He turned and faced the window. Elena took that as her cue to get out.

What was she doing? She had no idea.

She sat anxiously as she continued reading through her emails. She was not sure what she was reading.

She felt Damon behind her before she saw him. Her body instantly shivered and felt cold when he walked near her desk. She continued what she was doing and ignored the fact that his body continued to get closer to hers.

"I apologize for that earlier," Damon began in a more natural tone. He didn't sound tense, but he was not demanding, either.

"It's fine." Elena waved him off, not looking at him. "It was a weak moment. It will never happen again."

She hoped that he accepted that and walked away so she could continue her work.

Damon grabbed her chair and jerked it around, so she was forced to face him. Her eyes widened on instinct as she braced herself for what was to come.

"I wasn't apologizing for that."

She looked up at him, and his eyes were no longer soft. He looked angry, hungry almost.

"I was apologizing for having to take the phone call."

"Oh." She sounded weak, but she couldn't help it. She didn't know what she was supposed to say. All she could think of when he stared at her like that was how good it would feel to have his hands all over her.

"Elena," he growled, leaning his face in closer to hers.

She didn't know what to do.

"I just want you to know, in case your mind is racing a thousand miles per hour like mine is—that I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to hurt you because I care about you."

Elena swallowed.

She knew he was trying to be genuine, but she just couldn't take how serious he was being. It was making her uncomfortable and antsy.

"Oh, you don't want to hurt me because you care about me?" she taunted.

Damon grabbed her harshly and pulled her up, so they were now standing chest to chest.

"Perhaps you didn't hear me correctly," he barked. "I have never been like this with a woman. You have no idea what you are doing to me. I was trying to be nice instead of an asshole."

"Well, aren't you? I mean, this 'lunch friend' thing…"

Damon's mouth slammed to hers before she could finish. He was devouring her as if she was his last meal, but his hands were firm and gripping her tight. Elena reciprocated his moves, dancing her tongue with his, and grinding her body against his.

She could feel him growing harder and hungrier with need. She would be lying if she said she wasn't feeling the same way. His hands wrapped around her waist as he pulled her closer to his chest. Their mouths explored each other, both fighting for the control that they craved, but she surrendered and let him take the lead. Her body was seizing in about a hundred places as she melted into his touch and lips. She had dated before, but never felt this way and to this extent.

This was new, but now that she had had a taste, she was more than willing to dive in.

Damon quickly broke the kiss and panted against her lips as he rested his forehead on hers. His eyes were closed, and Elena could tell he was having an inner battle with himself just as she was. Part Devil and Part Angel were having a full-out wrestling match in her head.

The throbbing in between her legs proved which one would eventually win. She had never felt such a desire before. It was something that had been awakened...and now it wanted to be fed.

He backed away while licking his lips. He never took his eyes off hers as he walked into his office before closing the door. She stood there wondering if that really did just happen.

* * *

 **Their first kiss...what do you guys/gals think? I'm sure some of you won't like how Damon is behaving. But I kind of like their relationship - they are attracted to each other and they want each other but something is stopping them...Isn't this what we like in TVD?**

 **Anyway, I'm very glad to know my readers enjoy this Delena story. Thank you for all the support and kind reviews:)**

 **Please check out those amazing writers in this website- scarlett2112, Rachel3003, VitsAsh, vamphony, Salvatoreboys4ever, TheLittle MissVixen etc. They are brilliant!**


	9. Chapter 9

Elena was reading a book when she heard Caroline called her name. She headed into the living room, about to ask her friend what she wanted, when she saw Damon standing there. Caroline had disappeared, leaving them alone.

"You know, you could have called." She would have at least changed out of her giraffe pyjamas. She felt like a silly girl in front of him.

"I know," Damon replied, not looking sorry in the least. "But I wanted to see you."

"Why?"

"I need to see you."

"Okay," she said. Somehow she felt excited after hearing Damon's words. She didn't know why but it would make her think he was thinking of her as much as she was thinking of him. After their kiss, her entire body had been tense, and all she wanted was to feel his lips against hers again.

Elena brought him to her room and he sat down on the bed while she remained standing. That was until he took her hand and pulled her closer to him, then onto his lap.

"Damon," she whispered, wrapping her arms around him. "Is everything okay?"

"It will be," he said, right before he pressed his lips against hers. The kiss started off so gentle, so sweet, until it turned into something more. Until passion took over. His tongue against hers, Damon Salvatore gave her the best kiss she had ever had. His hand was at her nape, bringing her as close as she could be against his body, his mouth so perfect on hers.

Elena wanted more.

She slid off his lap, stood in front of him and pushed him back on the bed, going down with him. His eyes didn't leave hers and Elena swore she saw a little amusement flashed in them at her taking control. She slammed her lips back down onto his, kissing him hungrily, releasing all the pent-up want she had had for him. His hands roamed down her body, cupping her ass and squeezing gently. She moaned against his lips, and then moved her own down his jaw to his neck. She wanted him naked. She wanted his skin pressed against hers. He must have the same idea, because he rolled her over so he was on top, making her breath hitch. He pulled his T-shirt off, giving her the first look at his body.

Elena ran her fingers down his chest. "I have never seen something like this."

Damon looked down at her and started laughing. "This is compliment, Elena?"

"I'm serious," she said, sitting up and licking right down the centre. "Your body is…Wow."

Damon Salvatore had a great body.

"Now the pants," she demanded, wanting to see what else he was working with.

"First your top and bra," he countered, licking his lips, his eyes on her breasts. Fair was fair, so she removed her pyjama top and black bra. She lied back down, letting him have a good view, and then slid down her pants and panties.

"You are so beautiful, Elena," Damon said in a husky tone. "You are perfect."

She was not, but she appreciated the sentiment. Damon removed his jeans and boxers, and then slid back on the bed on his knees, completely naked.

"You look more incredible than I imagined," she whispered.

"You have been imagining, have you?" His voice was laced with amusement.

"You have no idea."

He pulled her nipple into his mouth. Her body arched to greet his mouth. His free hand began rubbing her clit as his tongue sucked her breast hard. The double sensation was overwhelming, and Elena could no longer control her breathing or the excessive moans releasing from her throat.

"You keep moaning like that and I'm going to come a lot sooner than I want, sweetheart."

"Then stop torturing me already."

He plunged two fingers deep inside her. Her body convulsed on impact as he drove further inside her.

Elena let out a puff of air as she tried to even her breathing. He was relentless in pleasure-torturing her clit and nipple at the same time. She was not used to the invasive pleasure, her body unfamiliar with the contact. She was trying to hold in the screams that desperately needed to come out.

"Release," Damon demanded. "I want to hear you and feel you at the same time." His voice was seductive as he mouthed her other breast and worked it in the same fashion as the first—aggressive and eager.

Her body unhinged, arching more and shaking harder. His fingers worked inside her harder as she peeked into an intense orgasm. Her hands flocked to his head, pulling and squeezing his locks.

"Oh my," Elena breathed out. "God!"

Her body laid flat on the bed again as he pulled his fingers out and released her breast. He was hovering directly on top of her, and she could feel his heavy breathing on her face.

Hesitantly, Elena opened her eyes and looked up at Damon. His face was intense, and she knew he was thinking the same thing she was—passion and lust.

In that moment, there was nothing but she and Damon, nothing but the pleasure they could bring each other. Right now, nothing else mattered.

"Damon?"

"Yeah," he rumbled, moving to brace himself over her. She could feel his male hardness pressed against her thigh and then up against her pelvis, begging for entrance.

"I'm on the pill."

"I'm clean," he said quickly. "Always use condoms." He paused, bringing his gaze back to hers. "But I want you like this."

"Okay," she whispered, her breath hitching as he slid inside her. She knew it was not her smartest move, but right now she couldn't care less, especially as Damon's mouth slammed down onto hers, and his hips started to move. Her nails on his back, she moved with him, kissing him back with everything she had.

"Mm, yes, Elena…" he moaned against her mouth, as he was close to his release. She could feel it because he tensed up as he controlled the movements.

"Oh, Damon…" She moaned over and over. "Damon…..." She clenched her eyes tighter as she felt her climax approaching. He slammed into her harder as he felt her body react.

Damon leaned over her, wrapping an arm around her stomach. His other hand went to her clit as he began rubbing relentlessly with each thrust. "I want to hear you scream my name, Elena," he demanded.

Elena couldn't focus on much as his body was pressed against her, and his fingers were working her clit. He shifted in deeper, taking her over the edge for several seconds.

"Damon…" She panted and moaned at the same time. Damon didn't slow down. He continued harder as another one built up inside her. She could barely make a coherent thought, nevertheless a coherent sentence.

"That's my girl..." Damon whispered in her ear as he waited for her breathing to calm down.

He backed off her and pulled out without his own release. He twirled her back around to face him and slowly dropped her on the bed. He bent to his knees and spread her legs. He brought his mouth to her lower part, licking and sucking up her juices. His tongue plunged hard inside of her hitting her sensitive spot. Elena grabbed fistfuls of his hair to stop him, but it only made him work harder. He grabbed both her wrists and pinned them to the mattress all while his tongue continued its tortuous play.

"Damon…stop," she begged. "I can't take it." Damon shook his head, and she knew she was fighting a losing battle. "Ah, god. Ah, Damon. Yes...oh, my god!" She screamed with no embarrassment or shyness. He licked and sucked up her climax once again. Her body was shaking from the hardest orgasm she had ever had.

"My name sounds good on your lips," he mused as he finally rose and towered over her.

Elena swallowed as she tried to slow her breathing. "That was...intense."

Damon grinned as he grabbed both of her legs and placed them on his shoulder. "Don't surrender on me now, Elena. You had no idea what you were getting yourself into." He winked as he positioned himself over her with both of her feet in the air.

She chuckled as he plunged back inside her. "I use to be in gymnastics, Mr Salvatore. There isn't a position I haven't done." His eyes widened. "I promise I won't break."

It was all the permission Damon needed to hear. He rapidly sped up the pace as he bent her body in half, taking everything she was willing to give.

They moaned and panted together, barely able to contain the inaudible sounds that were forced out. He thrust hard inside her until he finally released.

"Oh, god, Elena, you are amazing."

He held them in place for several seconds until he had released every last drop. He slowly put her legs down on each side of him. He leaned over and captured her mouth, kissing her into an oblivious bliss.

"Are you okay?" he asked after he tore his mouth from hers.

"Yeah," Elena replied lazily, smiling. She was more than okay—she felt great. "Did you come over with this intention?"

"No. I came here because I just had this urge to be around you," he admitted.

"Well, I'm glad you did," she said, licking her lips.

Damon kissed her bare shoulder, and Elena had to wonder why this man was so against commitment. They didn't have sex without emotion just now. No, sex without emotion was boring, and didn't leave one feeling like she was now. She was not stupid enough to think she could change his mind, of course; if this was all they could be then, for now, that was fine. She knew eventually she would have to let him go, but she would worry about that later. Men like Damon were the ones women would never forget, the ones women would be thinking about for the rest of their lives. Men like him would stick with you, but they were also the ones who would never stay.

"Me too," he whispered, pulling her into his arms. He pushed her hair off her damp face. "I think that now you can say you are a rebel."

Elena rolled her eyes and kissed his jaw.

She didn't what would come next but, right now, she was on cloud nine.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the support and kind reviews. I can't believe there are more than 100 reviews since I have posted this story not long ago. I have thoroughly enjoyed writing this Delena story and I'm glad my readers are enjoying this story too:)  
**

 **OK, another hot scene for our favourite couple Delena:) What will happen next after the passion? Watch the space...**


	10. Chapter 10

Damon left early the next morning to go home and get ready for work. He kneeled by Elena's side of the bed before he left, giving her a kiss and telling her that he would see her at work. Elena mumbled good-bye, then rolled over and buried herself in her sheets. She heard him chuckle, and then exited her room.

Her alarm went off not soon after, so she forced herself out of bed and into the shower. Flashbacks of last night rushing through her head, she couldn't stop smiling and blushing as she got dressed for work. Caroline had coffee and a knowing smile ready for her when Elena walked into the kitchen.

"Sleeping with your boss, hey?" Caroline teased, handing Elena her mug.

"Don't start," Elena replied, smiling at her friend. Her smile dropped when she thought of something. "You didn't hear us last night, did you? That would be awkward."

"I didn't hear anything," Caroline said, waving her hand in the air. Elena breathed a sigh of relief until her friend added, "Just Damon's name moaned over and over again."

Elena threw Caroline a look that dared her to continue. "I keep ear phones handy for whenever you have a guy spending the night, so maybe you should do the same."

"Does that mean he is going to be coming back?" Caroline asked, looking curious.

"I hope so," Elena admitted, blushing as she stared into her coffee, avoiding Caroline's eyes when she realised what she sounded like.

"Just be careful, Elena. You can't lose your job over this, can you?"

"I don't think so," Elena said, putting down the mug. She smoothed the front of her black blouse, picking at a piece of imaginary lint. "No one will find out, Caroline. It is just between Damon and me. I think, if anything, they would just frown upon it, but they aren't going to fire anyone."

Elena didn't know that for sure, of course, she was only guessing. But no one would find out. It was not like they had many people who worked in the firm, anyway. The other three lawyers weren't nosey and she was the only woman there, so there was no gossip or anything like that. At least, that was what she was telling herself. She said bye to Caroline, got in her car and drove to work, thinking about Damon the whole way. Now that her mind was clear, all the doubts were starting to set in.

Damon had made it clear he didn't want any kind of commitment, so where did that leave them? She needed to make sure she didn't get attached, so that when she walked away from this, she was not crawling.

She certainly hoped she could do it because right now, walking away wasn't an option.

x x x

They couldn't keep their eyes off one another.

Every time Damon walked by, every time his office door opened, their gazes just connected. Elena wondered if he was thinking about last night, because she sure was. It was all she could think about. She didn't even know how it happened. Damon just wanted to be around her, so he came over, and then they pretty much couldn't keep their hands off each other. Even now, the sexual tension between them was thick; each look Damon gave her tempted her to lock herself in his office and let him had his way with her.

This was bad. Very bad.

Damon was wearing a white shirt again, and Elena daydreamed about ripping it off him, buttons flying everywhere. She shifted on her seat, suddenly very uncomfortable. After spending the whole night with him, she wanted more

She forced herself to be productive, trying to push him out of her mind. When lunchtime came around, however, she wanted to do a happy dance. When Damon appeared at her desk, she grabbed her bag, ready to head out, until he said, "I have to cancel lunch today. One of my clients just rang me from prison and I have to leave now. Rain check?"

Elena tried to hide her disappointment. "Yeah, sure."

"Can you reschedule my two o'clock? I don't think I will make it back in time."

She nodded. "Sure."

Damon opened his mouth, but then closed it, deciding not to say whatever it was on his mind. "I will see you later."

"Bye."

Elena grabbed her bag and headed out to lunch alone, to her usual spot. She ordered her hamburger and fries, and her chocolate cake.

Then she sat back and wondered why it didn't satisfy her like it used to.

Elena was home alone when Damon showed up at her house again that night. Caroline was staying the night at Wes's house.

"Is this going to become a regular thing?" she asked, opening the door.

"Don't act like you don't enjoy it," Damon said, flashing his smile at her. He lifted his arm, which had containers of Chinese food hanging from it in a plastic bag. "And I brought you food."

Elena closed the door and followed him into the kitchen.

"I brought some for Caroline too."

"She is at Wes's," she told him, smiling as he put the food down and pulled her against him. "Is this you making up for lunch?"

Damon nodded and buried his face in her neck. "We need to have a talk."

"About what?" Elena asked, suspicion lacing her tone. "Is this another 'no commitment' conversation?"

He lifted his head and studied her, then led her to her couch, sitting down first before pulling her on top of him. "Are you okay with that?"

"With us sleeping together but having no commitment to each other?" She clarified with him. "Is this just a 'no label' type of thing?"

"Not exactly," he replied, hands gripping her hips. "It means that we are not together, Elena. I don't want a relationship right now. I don't want a girlfriend or anything like that."

She already gathered that from their last conversation, so she was curious about what he was getting to here. "I know that, Damon."

"It means we are not exclusive," he sad, clearing his throat.

Oh.

Elena blinked.

She opened her mouth, and then slammed it shut.

"So, what you are saying is you want to sleep with me, and sleep with other women too, and you want me to know and be okay with it?"

"What I'm saying is that we aren't together, so the option is open. We don't belong to each other," Damon continued, infuriating her further.

"So, you don't care if I sleep with other men?" she asked, her head reeling. Was this modern-day dating? Or was he counting on her being the good woman that she was, only wanting one man, while he could sleep around? On one hand, she appreciated the honesty, but on the other…

 _Why do I attract all the dickheads?_

She narrowed her eyes. "So when is the last time you slept with another woman?"

Damon tightened his grip on her.

"Damon?"

"Maybe three weeks ago," he admitted, eyes scanning hers. "Don't overthink everything, Elena. We are amazing in bed, I want you, I will treat you well and we enjoy spending time together."

Why did it feel like a pretend relationship? Or was it more like an open relationship?

"What happened to you?" Elena blurted out, wondering what made Damon this way. Was this normal? No, it wasn't. She felt bad after she said it, because she guessed it was just his lifestyle choice. Not everyone believed in monogamy and commitment. Was she being close-minded? Damn, now Damon even had her questioning herself. She was not a judgemental person, she was not. To each their own, she had always said, but she didn't know how to react to this right now. When Damon said 'no commitment,' she didn't really think about the exclusivity. She didn't think about it because when she saw someone, she only saw them. What was the point of being with more than one person? If she was with someone, it was because she liked them in some way, because she wanted them over every other man she knew.

"Elena—"

"And you waited until after we slept together to clarify this?" she questioned, pursing her lips.

Waited until she craved him. She did crave him.

Could she do this without getting any more emotionally involved than she already her? She shut down the stupid voice inside of her head saying that maybe she would be the exception to the rule. She thought that voice was her ego, and it needed to shut up right now, because that idea wasn't going to end well.

"I need time to think about this," she told him, her mind exploding.

"Okay," Damon said, kissing her cheek. "I like you, Elena. I don't see why we can't just have some fun together, enjoy the present. Not everything in life needs to be taken so seriously, you know? And with me, you know what you get."

The answer to that would be 'not fidelity.'

After Damon left, she sat down and ate the Chinese food he brought. The scary part of this whole thing was her first thought about it all: What kind of woman did it make her if she agreed to this?

Did it make her not a good woman, because she would consider casual sex with a man who was sleeping with others? Immoral?

* * *

 **What do you guys/gals think? I'm sure all of you would think Damon is being an asshole in this chapter, LOL! Well, let's see what will happen to our favourite couple...**

 **Thank you again for the support and wonderful reviews.**


	11. Chapter 11

Work the next day had a completely different vibe than the day before. Yesterday was hopeful and positive, while today was dark and realistic. Damon was not like the men Elena read about in romance novels. He didn't come to find her and fall in love with her; they didn't get a happily ever after. What she did get, though, was hot, steamy sex and multiple orgasms with a man who looked like he belonged on the cover of one of those novels, and that was going to have to be enough for her if she wanted to do this with him. She was wearing all black today, a pencil skirt and a tight top with red lipstick. Damon stopped in his tracks when he saw her, slowly approaching, like he was not sure what to expect.

"Good morning," he greeted, glancing over her. "You look beautiful today."

"Thank you," she said. "Are you here for lunch today?"

He nodded, eyes widening ever so slightly. "I am."

"Can we talk then?"

"Yeah," he said. "Of course. I'm actually surprised, I have to admit."

"That I want to talk to you?"

"Yeah." He winced. "Last night didn't go so well, did it?"

"Not for me," she muttered, making him chuckle.

"I'm sorry¸ Elena. I really do like you, and I don't want to disappoint you, but I can't change who I am."

"We will talk at lunch," Elena said, wanting him to squirm a little, or at least his version of it. Let him wondered for the rest of the morning what she was going to say to him, he deserved it.

"Okay," Damon said, nodding once. He walked into his office and shut the door, and Elena sighed.

She knew there was no winning this with him; he was obviously emotionally unavailable, and she was not. He had these rules he had set for himself, and he was going to follow them. So she either had to abide by them, or let him go.

But she wanted him.

She wanted him badly.

And she was going to have him.

x x x

Damon looked extremely suspicious as Elena told him that she still wanted to keep sleeping with him.

"Are you sure?" he asked, second-guessing everything. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"Should have thought about that before you made me like you and gave me the best sex of my life," Elena told him, being honest and straightforward as one could be. "I want you. I want to sleep with you again. I guess we can just do the 'friends with benefits' thing, yeah?"

"I know I have been selfish coming after you," Damon admitted, reaching over and taking her hand. "You deserve better than me. I know that too, all right." He paused, and then grinned devilishly. "I'm glad you enjoyed the sex, and I can't wait to be inside you again. You just need to tell me if your emotions or feelings get in the way, okay? Because then we need to stop."

 _Who says it is my emotions that are going to get in the way?_

Okay, it probably would be, but she could be an ice queen with the best of them. Elena found herself wanting to figure Damon out though. Why was he so scared to get attached, or to have anyone get attached to him? Her bet was ex-girlfriend issues. That was what she had found it usually was.

"I will be sure to tell you if I get to the point where I want to threaten any other woman you look at," Elena joked, rolling her eyes. "Just sex, right?"

"Yeah, but I mean it is not like I don't care about you," Damon said, rubbing his thumb along her knuckles. "Saying it is just sex sounds so cold. It is just us enjoying each other without all the labels and ideals modern society forces upon us."

All Elena heard was 'it's just sex,' but she let him had his speech. Whatever helped him sleep at night.

"Are you going to come over tonight then?" she asked, glancing at him from under her lashes. She was just going to enjoy the time they had together. Why not? It was not every day a man who looked like Damon Salvatore wanted her as badly as she wanted him, even if it was only temporary.

"Yeah, I want to," he almost growled, eyes darkening. "There are so many things I want to do to you, Elena. With you. Damn, you have no idea how sexy you are."

He spoke in a low tone so only she could hear.

Elena swallowed hard and decided to change the subject, seeing that they were in a public place and couldn't exactly do anything right now. "Thanks for the Chinese, by the way. I ate some for breakfast too."

Damon laughed, eyes dancing with amusement. "You are welcome. Do you want me to bring something tonight too?"

"Like what?"

"Anything you want," he said, letting go of her hand and picking up his bottle of water, cracking it open.

She thought about how badly she wanted him, and she didn't really want to sit there eating with him beforehand. Besides, wasn't that more for people who were dating? Then again, she could always save the food for after the hot sex.

"Just you," she decided, staring at his mouth.

"Okay," he whispered, shifting in his seat. "Maybe I will just follow you home after work."

"Maybe I will like that," she fired back, and then looked down at the slice of cake on her plate. Her hunger for food was now redirected to something else, something she shouldn't be indulging in, but was unable to say no to.

Damon Salvatore was her new vice.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Damon said, leaning back in his chair. "You can ask me anything."

"Why did you suddenly want me?" she inquired, and then rushed to explain. "I mean, I have been working here for a little while now, and you never really showed any interest, so why did you start wanting to hang out?"

He looked down at the table, then back up at her. "I don't know. I always thought you were beautiful, ever since I laid my eyes on you on your first day. I remember you were wearing this blue top and a skirt. You looked beautiful. I guess I just couldn't stay away from you any longer, or didn't want to."

Damon was a man used to getting what he wanted, she realised. He was powerful, dominant and always in control—of course women couldn't say no to him. That, paired with his looks and charm, made the man practically unstoppable.

Elena took a giant bite of cake, chewing slowly, keeping her gaze on him. She was stuck between wishing he had never approached her and being glad that he did. Her head was just filled with all things Damon, and she needed to take a step back and get herself under control.

He was not hers.

He would never be.

She needed to understand that and not secretly hope that he would change his mind, that she would change his mind. Nobody could change a man. Elena knew this. But she also didn't want to play games because that really wasn't her. Then again, she had never had casual sex either. She had two sexual partners in the past, and they were all her boyfriends. This was new ground for her, and she had a feeling she was only agreeing to it because she liked Damon already, which actually wasn't a good thing. If any other man asked this arrangement from her… Well, she would have cut him out of her life right now. She was good at that, deleting messages, blocking numbers and moving on. She did it when she knew she needed to protect herself from that person. If she did it, it meant the man had definitely upset her enough for the need to go cold turkey on him.

"We should get back to work," she said, pulling her money out before Damon could object. "And I'm paying. You haven't let me pay for anything yet."

"That is because the man should always pay," Damon responded, scowling. "Don't be stubborn, Elena."

"I'm not the one being stubborn," she retorted, placing the money on the table to cover both meals. "This isn't a date, Damon. You don't have to pay."

She enjoyed watching the muscle tick in his jaw. "It doesn't matter if it is a date or not. I'm still paying."

Elena simply smirked, leaving the money on the table and heading towards the exit. She heard his curse behind her, but walked outside then waited for him at the door. When Damon joined her, he was not happy, but she didn't really care. They walked back to work in silence, her mood pretty chirpy, not letting his grumpiness brought her down. He waited until she got into the elevator first, and then stepped in. He always pressed the buttons. Every single time. So she reached forward and quickly pressed level four before he could. Damon turned to her with a death stare.

"What?" she asked innocently, making her eyes wide and batting her eyelashes. She stood back and looked straight ahead. When the doors opened again, she walked out, without even a backwards glance at him. Placing her bag on the desk, she sat in her chair, ready to finish her to-do list. Damon stopped at her desk, an odd look on his face, like he thought she was up to something, or maybe like he didn't know what to do with her.

"Don't you have work to do?" Elena asked, opening her laptop.

His blue-grey eyes narrowed to slits. "In a few hours, you will be all mine, Elena. Remember that."

He stormed into his office.

Was that a reminder not to push him?

Elena shrugged.

Then she squeezed her thighs together.

The end of the day couldn't come soon enough.

* * *

 **Elena is playing a game she shouldn't be playing - her heart is at stake but she is still willing to go ahead...What will happen next?**

 **Thank you again for the wonderful support and kind reviews. One of my readers said this story is similar to "Sweet and Sexy Mistakes" by LoveEpicLove - well, that story is one of my favourite but when I started writing this story, it didn't cross my mind that the idea is similar. All I want to focus is Delena. Anyway, I just hope I can bring out the dynamics and chemistry of Delena again in this story and I hope my readers will enjoy reading it:)**


	12. Chapter 12

"Holy crap!" Elena yelled as she walked into her house the next day after work, only to see Caroline and Wes making out on the kitchen counter. "No, just no. I eat there, Caroline. Not cool."

Elena covered her eyes with her hand, but didn't move. This was her house too. "And where else have you been christening? Is the couch safe? Can you wipe down all surfaces, please?"

She heard them scrambling to put their clothes on. She had seen Caroline naked enough times over the years, but she really didn't want to see her friend making out with someone where her food lived.

"You can open your eyes," Caroline said, sounding amused.

Elena opened them and walked to the fridge, her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she looked around. Wes was standing there shirtless, and his body was okay—nothing like Damon's, but not every man could be as blessed.

She opened the fridge and pulled out an apple juice box. "You two getting bored of your bed or something?"

"You are home early," Caroline explained, jumping up on the counter.

"Yeah, I got off a little early today," Elena said, looking to Wes "How are you, Wes?"

"Good," he said, grinning. "Aaron keeps asking about you."

Elena looked at her best friend, who put her hands up in an 'I'm innocent' gesture. "Don't look at me. I told Aaron you were seeing someone now."

"Do you not know men?" Wes said, smirking. "When he heard you weren't available, it only made him want you even more. He wants to come around with me again, to hang out here, or whatever."

"Because last time wasn't awkward enough?" Elena said, pursing her lips. "Not like you two would know, since you were both making goo-goo eyes at each other all night."

"I knew it was getting awkward," Wes admitted, shrugging. "I just ignored it."

Great.

"Is Damon coming over tonight?" Caroline asked, taking a banana out of the fruit bowl and peeling it.

"Yeah, later." Elena looked at Wes, but then realise he didn't know Damon was her boss, just that they worked together. Speaking of Damon, if he was going to spend every night here, when did he have the time to possibly sleep with someone else? Not that she wanted him to, but she didn't know why he just wouldn't admit that they had something going on here.

"Keep tomorrow free," Caroline said, mouthful of banana. "We should have a girls' night, just us two."

"Sounds perfect," Elena told her friend, heading to her room. She stopped in her tracks when she realised just how messed-up her situation with Damon was, because the first thought that ran through her head was: if she told him that she couldn't see him tomorrow night, would he spend it with someone else?

x x x

Elena knocked on the door of Damon's office the next morning, file in hand.

"Come in," Damon called out.

She opened the door and walked in, her heels clicking as she approached his desk. "Here is the Mason file."

"Thanks," he said, glancing up from his laptop. He looked behind her and asked, "Is anyone else here?"

"No," Elena replied, putting the file on his desk. "But don't get any ideas. They can come back at any moment."

"You worry too much, Elena." Damon grinned, crooking his finger at her. "You can at least give me a kiss, especially since I don't get to see you tonight."

Yes, about that. Who was he going to see tonight, if not her? She couldn't ask, she knew she couldn't, but she really did want to know.

 _He is not yours, and you are meant to be okay with it._

 _I have to be okay with it._

 _I am._

 _I hope._

Easier said than done.

Elena glanced at the door, then bent down and gave him a quick kiss, but Damon had other ideas and deepened it. She put her hands on his shoulders to brace herself, then used them as leverage to push her back.

"More," he demanded, licking his lips.

"No," she told him, taking a few steps back. "I have to get back to work, and if someone sees us…"

 _I will probably lose my job, and he will get to keep his._

She was replaceable here, no matter how much they all told her that they couldn't function without her. And wasn't that a buzzkill?

Elena flashed him a smile then closed his office door behind her, heading back to her desk. The rest of the day passed slowly. Damon walked her out to her car, his hand on her lower back. It sucked that it was the most touching they were going to be able to do right now; they couldn't even have a quick kiss in case anyone saw them. He opened her door for her, his hand now on her hip, squeezing gently.

"Bye, Damon," she said, staring into his eyes, hoping that he wasn't going to be with another woman tonight. It was just one night; surely he could manage without sex?

"Have a good night with Caroline, Elena," Damon told her, keeping one hand on the door, the other on the hood. "Call me if you need anything, or if you change your mind and want to see me. I can always come over after the two of you finish your bonding session."

"I will let you know," Elena said, knowing that she probably wouldn't be inviting him over tonight, unless she and Caroline got drunk. "Bye."

He closed the door and Elena drove home, her mind racing. He said to call him if she needed anything so maybe that meant he had no plans tonight? She made it home before Caroline for once, jumped in the shower and started getting ready for their night out. She had picked out a black off-the-shoulder dress, and paired it with a pair of black ankle boots. She heard Caroline calling her name just as she was about to do her makeup, so she grabbed her bag and joined Caroline in her room.

"Where are we even going?" Elena asked, sitting on the floor in front of the full-length mirror in Caroline's room.

"Dinner followed by a few drinks?" Caroline suggested, opening her bathroom door. "I will have a quick shower and then we can decide."

"Okay, sounds good," Elena said, even though the two of them would probably end up at their regular bar. While Caroline finished getting ready, Elena sat on the kitchen countertop and poured herself a drink, a vodka and orange juice.

"You are drinking before dinner?" Caroline asked, eyebrows lifting. "And before we even took a photo of the two of us? Now you are going to have drunk face in them."

"I'm not going to have drunk face after one drink," Elena replied, rolling her eyes. She pointed to her friend's cup. "I poured you one." She paused, taking in her friend's tight red dress. "You look amazing. I wonder if I can fit my body in that dress."

"Try and see." Caroline grinned and picked up her drink. "So, we are taking a taxi then?"

"Yep," Elena said. "If we are going out, we may as well go big."

"Go big or go home," Caroline added, lifting her cup in the air. "To a good night with my best friend in the world."

Elena touched her cup with Caroline's, and then they both drank.

x x x

"How good is this?" Elena asked Caroline, eyes widened, pointing to her mojito which they had given her in some fancy jar.

"Pretty amazing," Caroline conceded, taking a sip of her own. "And the jars are super cute too."

"We should buy jars for home," Elena said, nodding. "And mojito ingredients. I will bet we make great mojitos."

After a delicious dinner—Elena got the hamburger and fries, Caroline had nachos—they ended up at their usual watering hole, and were now on their third drink. They had decided to mix things up, trying a few different cocktails that they had never had before.

"We should try a new shot next," Caroline said, scanning the drink menu. "How about a 'wet passion' shot? Have you tried that before?"

"Yeah, I have. They are good."

"Lemon drop?"

"No, I haven't tried that one," Elena said, reading the ingredients. Her phone beeped with a message from Damon.

 _Hope you are having a good night._

Elena smiled as she replied.

 _I am. Are you?_

Caroline stood. "I will go get the next round. Don't make eye contact, there are men circling and just hoping for a cue to approach."

Elena laughed and kept her eyes on her phone, waiting for Damon's reply. She got it almost instantly.

 _Send me a photo of you._

She sent him one of the selfies she took before leaving the house.

 _You look so beautiful_ , he replied, making her glance up, smiling like an idiot. Unfortunately for her, she happened to unintentionally make eye contact with a random guy walking by. When he saw Elena, he must think she was smiling at him because he started to make his way over. Caroline told her not to make eye contact, but smiling was even worse, because some men would take that as an invitation.

"Hello," he said, pulling out a chair and sitting down next to Elena.

"Uhh, hi," Elena said, looking behind him for Caroline. "I'm sorry, I'm just waiting here for my friend to come back, I didn't mean to—"

"You are too pretty to be sitting here all alone," he cut her off. "Why don't I keep you company until your friend gets back?"

Elena pursed her lips, and then looked down into her drink. Not like he was giving her a chance here. She could just ask him to please leave, and was just about to do that when Caroline returned to the table with two shot in her hands.

"Who are you?" Caroline asked, sitting down and sliding Elena's shot over to her. She turned to Elena and said, "Thought I told you not to make eye contact."

"It was an accident."

Caroline sighed and turned to the man. "We are kind of on a girls' night. No men allowed."

"Well, maybe I will buy us a round of drinks," he said, grinning at Caroline. "That might change your mind."

"No, thank you," Elena told him. "Appreciate the offer, but we kind of want to be left alone."

"No women want to be left alone" was his smug reply.

Elena glanced at Caroline, who stared back at her.

At the same time, both of them did their shots, slammed the empty glasses down, stood up, and then headed to the bar for another drink.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the support and kind reviews. I'm really excited to know my readers are enjoying this story so much:)**

 **I know I can't please everyone but I'm trying my very best to bring out the dynamics and chemistry of our favourite couple. My writing is still not good compared to some of the other amazing writers in this website but I will keep on trying!**


	13. Chapter 13

Elena and Caroline practically fell out of the taxi once they arrived home, and then stumbled to the front door. Elena couldn't find her house key, and it took Caroline about five minutes to find hers. They did make it inside though. Caroline sat on the counter while Elena grabbed two water bottles plus four painkillers. Then she turned the fryer on because she really felt like fries right now, and luckily they had some in the freezer.

"You want fries? I feel like bacon and eggs," Caroline said, grabbing the bottle of water and painkillers.

Elena shrugged, her head spinning. "Then let's make both."

"Okay," Caroline agreed, and then started giggling. "I had a fun night. Even though I fell over." She paused, seeming lost in thought. "We can never go back there now."

Elena rolled her eyes. "It is the only place we go to, Caroline. Don't worry, no one will remember you falling over."

"The bouncer will," Caroline grumbled, swallowing the pills with the water. "He is there every single week. And he is hot. And he saw me fall over. I possibly flashed him during the incident."

"You probably made his night then," Elena said, taking the fries out of the freezer. "What's the time?"

Caroline checked her phone. "It is eleven. We better get to bed or we will never wake up for work tomorrow."

"You think we would be more mature and stop going out on weekdays," Elena groaned, rubbing her forehead.

"We will do that when we are old."

Elena and Caroline were eating the fries, smothering them in ketchup, when Caroline said, "Is it too late to call the men over?"

"What, you aren't going to spoon me tonight?" Elena teased, licking the salt from her lips.

"I love you, Elena, but there's one thing that you can't give me." Caroline wiggled her eyebrows at Elena.

"You going to call Wes?"

"You going to call Damon?" Caroline asked in return.

They both grinned and picked up their phones.

x x x

Damon didn't answer his phone.

It was late, and he had work in the morning too, so maybe he fell asleep. Elena checked the time since their last message. It was over an hour ago. Of course, her mind rushed to the worst scenario and, even though if Damon was with someone else she couldn't exactly get angry about it, she found unable to sleep because of it. Then again, it was not like he would have found a random for the night. He was at home, didn't even go out anywhere tonight. He was probably fast asleep. Elena couldn't believe she was even worrying about this. She was not going to bother asking him where he was tonight, because she was not his girlfriend and it was not her business. She had never thought she would be one of the women in such a situation, but it seemed like this was the usual for dating in recent times.

She didn't like, not one bit, but she did like Damon, and she wanted her fill of him. It was reckless and selfish and stupid, mainly the latter. If she got too close to him, it was her who would get hurt in the long run, not him. She should bail now, but there was something telling her not to.

She groaned and rolled over, burying her face in her pillow, the alcohol making the room spin.

She was not Damon's exception.

She needed to say it like a chant, over and over, so deep down inside she didn't think that he was going to change his ways for her. She was smarter than this, usually, but Damon made her brain turn itself off. She couldn't blame him. It was her. And when this went south, it was her who was going to have to get herself together.

She closed her eyes, and allowed sleep to come.

x x x

Elena was five minutes late to work the next morning. She rushed in, coffee in her hand, happy to see that no clients were early and waiting. Placing her coffee on her desk, she hoped that her headache wouldn't last all day. She had had worse hangovers though, so she knew she would get by fine; she had no choice.

Damon was the last lawyer to arrive. He came straight to her desk and flashed her a knowing smile, followed by a "Good morning."

"Morning," Elena replied, taking a sip of coffee.

"You don't look hung over," he pointed out, smirking.

"The power of makeup."

"Did you have a good night though?" he asked, resting his briefcase on her desk.

"I did," she told him, smiling warmly. "It was good to have some quality Caroline time. We probably shouldn't have drunk so much though."

Binge-drinking, followed by binge-eating. Not their finest moments, but fun nonetheless.

Damon licked his lips, then asked, "Did you go home alone?"

Elena blinked slowly a few times.

 _Did I go home alone?_

"I wouldn't have tried to call you when I got home if I didn't," she said, arching her brow. "I'm not the type to bring home a random guy, Damon. You should know me better than that."

She regretted the words instantly. Maybe it would have been good to let him think that she had options too; it was him who set the rules. Now he was going to think she was going to be sitting around waiting for him whenever he wanted to see her, so basically he was free to do as he pleased and had a loyal woman at home.

"Right," Damon muttered, looking down. "I just had to ask, is all. wi'll see you for lunch?"

Elena nodded. "Yeah. You have a meeting in twenty minutes."

"I know," he said, grinning. "Send him in when he gets here."

"Okay."

Was it possible that Damon was stressing over her last night too? Over what she was doing and with whom? Or was he just merely curious? She really didn't think she was cut out for all this. She was not usually one to play games with men, and this certainly felt like one.

She just didn't know what to think anymore.

In the end, Elena decided not to think at all.

She and Damon had lunch together, then after work Damon followed her back to her house. As soon as she got out of her car, he grabbed her by the waist and pushed her back against her door, kissing her like he hadn't seen her in a month. He pulled her top out of her skirt, where she had tucked it in, and ran his hands over the expanse of her skin. When he started trailing his hand up her thigh, she pulled him to the front door. He kissed her neck while she found her key then, when she finally got the door open, Damon lifted her in his arms, closed the door, and carried her to her bedroom, their mouths never parting. He put her down and she finally got to play out her fantasy of ripping his work shirt off, the buttons flying everywhere, the white material thrown onto the floor. He removed his shoes while Elena got on her knees, and then she undid his belt and removed his slacks.

She raised her eyes to his in disbelief. "You went commando to work?"

He grinned and started to stroke himself, then lifted her off the floor.

"What are you doing?" she complained. "I want you in my mouth."

"And I want to have you against the wall. Guess who is going to get what they want first?"

Elena was guessing it wasn't going to be her as Damon undressed her, lifted her once more and pinned her against the wall. His mouth slammed down on hers and his fingers worked their magic, pushing inside her gently then working her clit. He removed his fingers and slid inside her, thrusting gently at first, the cool wall behind her back. He sucked on her lower lip, pulling lightly with his teeth, then started to kiss her neck. She laid her head against the wall and closed her eyes, her nipples rubbing against his chest. He moved in and out of her in a perfect rhythm, hitting her at just the right angle.

"Damon," Elena moaned, as he continued to kiss down her shoulder, her collarbone, then back up her neck. She loved being kissed on her neck; it turned her on so much, took her to that point of no return. The point where she didn't care what was going on, she just wanted to be taken right then and there. The point where her mind turned off and all she could do was feel, and chase her orgasm.

"What do you want, baby?" Damon said into her ear, nibbling on the lobe. "You feel so good...Elena."

 _What do I want?_

 _I want him._

 _I want this moment to never end._

Elena ran her nails down his back, then kissed his lips when he brought them back to hers. "Don't stop, Damon," she said against them before kissing him once more.

"I'm not going to stop," he gritted out, licking her lips until she opened for him again. His hands squeezed her hips, and her heels dig into his lower back. Damon was in complete control right now, and she loved it. She warned him before she came and he grabbed her face, holding her still and looking into her eyes. He came a few moments later, and Elena watched the expressions played out on his face, eyes shuttering in pleasure. She would never get tired of watching him come, never.

She could stare into those blue-grey eyes forever.

* * *

 **What do you guys/gals think? Their relationship or I should say the game they are playing is dangerous and risky - both are putting their hearts at stake...**

 **I'm so, so happy that my readers like this story. I'm having a good time writing it myself. Writing is fun, esp you know some people will enjoy your writing:)**

 **Once again, thank you so much!**


	14. Chapter 14

_One Month Later_

Elena had never been to Damon's house until now. She didn't know why, but it was probably because she had never asked to come here, and Damon had never offered. For her, it was easier to go to her house, because then it wasn't her who had to up and leave early in the mornings, or drive over late in the evenings. But tonight, Damon had invited her to his house, and said he was going to cook for her. She didn't even know he could cook. They would usually eat out, or she would make something for the two of them. This was the first time she would be tasting something that Damon had made, and she was pretty excited about it.

"Your house is beautiful," Elena said, her gaze landing on everything. It was a modern three-bedroom, two-bathroom home, very spacious and masculine. Everything was black, grey or white, sometimes a splash of red here and there.

"Thank you," Damon said as they walked through it, hand in hand. They stopped in the kitchen, where he led her to the table and pulled a chair out for her. "Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink?"

"Do you have any—"

"Red wine?" he cut in, laughing. "I bought a bottle just for you."

"Thanks," Elena said, smiling at his thoughtfulness. She smoothed down her floral dress and asked, "So, what's on the menu tonight?"

"Hamburgers and fries, followed by chocolate cake," he stated, making Elena laugh.

"Really?" she asked, standing up and walking over to Damon, wrapping her arms around him from behind.

"Well, I thought to myself, what is her favourite dish? And it is really a no-brainer. So I'm going to make you the best burger in the world, followed by chocolate cake that I didn't make myself but went out of my way to buy from the best bakery in the city."

She placed a kiss on his spine, then let go of him. "You are so sweet, Damon. You didn't have to go through so much trouble." Although, not going to lie, she did appreciate it.

It felt nice for someone to go out of their way to make one feel special. There was nothing like it, Elena didn't think. Actions spoke louder than words, and his action told her that he cared about her in his own Damon way. It was the small things that count.

"I know, but I wanted to," Damon said, turning and kissing her mouth. "Now, I'm going to get you a glass of wine to drink while I sort out dinner."

He poured Elena a glass, and then lifted her onto his counter to drink it, supervising his cooking. Or grilling, at least. When Elena saw him pulling out some beetroot, she knew he really had been paying attention to the things she liked.

"Impressive," she muttered, bringing the glass to her lips and taking a sip. It was delicious.

Over the last month, Elena and Damon had spent several nights every week with each other, and they still had lunch together every day. She hadn't asked him about other women, and he hadn't asked her about other men. They had just been enjoying each other, not really worrying about anything else. Did it feel like a relationship to Elena? Yes. But she was not going to say that out loud, because she thought it was going to have Damon running for the hills. He told her that he and his ex-girlfriend Rose didn't have a good breakup, and they were together for four years. Elena was sure that it was whatever happened there that had him so scared of commitment, the reason why his walls were ten feet high.

She understood; it was a scary thing to be vulnerable, to give someone else the power to hurt you. It was scary to everyone though. Hearts got broken every day, but there were some loves that lasted forever, and that was what everyone was hoping for. Divorce rates were high, it seemed like everyone was just doing the casual sex thing right now. Having sex first and asking questions later.

Times had changed, and everyone was adapting. She was the same as well, a closet hopeless romantic, doing the casual sex thing. Sure, Damon treated her like a girlfriend, but she was not one. Did it really matter what she was if she was treated as such though? At the end of the day, it really was just a label.

Damn, she must have been hanging around with Damon way too long.

When he had finished, they both sat at his table and ate together.

"This is the best burger I have ever had," Elena told him after she swallowed the first bite. And it was—because Damon made it for her.

Damon smirked and popped a fry in his mouth. "It is cute that you care enough to lie and tell me that."

Elena rolled her eyes, smiling. "It is. And how come we have never come to your house before now?"

His eyes widened at the question, and she noticed he chewed and swallowed his bite a lot slower than needed be. "I don't usually bring women back here."

"What do you mean?" she asked, brow furrowing. "You usually just go to their houses and don't bring anyone back here?"

Damon nodded.

"Why?"

"I don't know," he said, looking a little sheepish. "It is my private space. I guess, I just usually don't bring anyone here."

"Then why did you bring me?" she pushed him a little. Did he realise he was making it sound like she was different to him? It was giving her hope, and she didn't need hope unless he really was considering changing his non-dating rules for her.

Damon cleared his throat. "I just felt like it was time, I don't know. We have been seeing each other for over a month now."

So now they were 'seeing each other'.

Interesting.

"Well, I'm glad you brought me here," Elena said, saving him for having to explain any more.

Damon exhaled in relief and continued to finish eating. She wondered what had happened to him to make him this way, so closed off. It was like he could shut his emotions off like a switch, which wasn't a good thing. It meant he could easily cut people out of his life without looking back—like her, for example. It meant that people were easily replaceable to him. The thought of him replacing her did hurt.

No, it killed.

It burnt.

After dinner, even though Elena was full, she made room for the chocolate cake.

"Damn," she whispered, then moaned. "You need to tell me where this bakery is."

"It is good, right?" Damon said, eyes darkening as she licked her fork.

"Good? It is amazing," she said, taking another bite. "How did you find this place?"

"My cousin owns it," he stated proudly, putting his own fork down and just watching me eat. "Sarah can make any dessert you want, she is so talented. Her husband Silas is a lawyer, and an ex MMA fighter. He helps her run the business."

"Sounds amazing," Elena said, impressed. "If all her desserts are as delicious as this cake, I see myself gaining a lot of weight in the future."

Damon flashed his teeth at her. "Don't worry, we will be working it off. Together."

"You haven't even been going to the gym recently, is that why? Getting enough exercise as it is?" she teased, finishing the last of the cake.

"Yes," he said, laughing. "I haven't had the time, really. I have been going a few times a week, but I used to go every day. Why, seeing the difference in my body?"

"I don't know," she replied, reaching out and touching his chest through his t-shirt. "Yeah, maybe it is getting a little soft."

He smirked, because they both knew the truth. His body couldn't possibly get in any better shape.

"I think you need to work out a little more," she continued. "May I suggest on top of me?"

Damon laughed and reached his finger to her mouth, rubbing some chocolate from the side of her lips. He then sucked it in his mouth.

"How about I show you my bedroom? Then we can devise a workout plan."

"I like this idea," Elena said, getting up and moving to his lap. She gave him a kiss and cupped his cheek with her hand. "Thank you for dinner."

"Thank you for pretending to like it."

"I did like it."

"You liked the cake."

"I liked everything," she said, kissing his strong jaw. "Just like I like everything about you."

"Elena," he growled in a low tone. "Better stop or we won't make it to my bedroom."

"That's okay," she whispered into his ear. "You don't have a roommate to worry about, so we can do it anywhere you like."

"And how do you know I don't have a roommate?" he asked, turning to bury his face in her neck.

Elena went still. "Do you?"

"No," he said, and she could feel him smile against her skin.

She rolled her eyes then lifted his head, cupping both cheeks in her hands, his nose almost touching hers. She kissed him softly before standing, taking his large hand into her smaller one. He stood, swooped her in his arms, and stormed up the staircase, turning right and opening the first door they came across. He turned on the light, revealing a spacious room with a massive black bed. He laid her down on the bed then kneeled before her, pulling off her sandals one by one. He lifted her dress, exposing her black lace panties, and slowly removed them too.

He then put his mouth on her, and Elena stared at the ceiling wondering how did she get so lucky.


	15. Chapter 15

Elena had to do a double-take when she saw none other than her ex-boyfriend Liam walked into the office. Did he need a lawyer? What did he do? Probably something creepy.

"Liam, what are you doing here?" she asked, trying to keep her tone even. Her skin crawled at his close proximity. Once a man cheated on her, she cut them out. They were dead to her, they didn't exist. She had broken up with Liam a long time ago, and she didn't know why he kept popping up in her life. He should remain in his coffin where he belonged.

"Elena," Liam said, giving her a once-over. "I came here to see Damon."

Elena's eyes narrowed to slits. "Do you have an appointment?"

Liam should address Damon as Mr Salvatore, unless he knew him personally. Did Liam know Damon personally? That would be quite a coincidence, but then again, this city was a small one.

"No," Liam replied, glancing at his watch. "Just tell him know that I'm here, please."

Instead of picking up the phone, Elena walked to Damon's door and knocked.

"Come in," Damon called out. She stepped inside, leaving the door open.

"How do you know Liam?" she asked him. "Dr Davis. He is here, wanting to talk to you."

Maybe Liam was his doctor? That would make sense.

Damon closed the folder he was going through and stood up. "What? What is he doing here?"

Liam chose that moment to walk in, and he closed the door behind him.

"Well, this is awkward," Elena muttered, looking between the two men. She pointed to the door. "Um, I'm just going to go…"

"I told you to become friends with her, not sleeping with her," Liam said to Damon, blue eyes filled with fury.

"Wh-what?" Elena stuttered, wondering if she had heard right.

Liam asked Damon to be friends with me? Why? How did that benefit him, exactly? And Damon? What the hell…That was why he suddenly wanted to be friends, and was even a little pushy about it?

Confused, Elena turned to Damon and pointed again, this time at him. "You have two seconds to explain."

"Liam and I know each other," Damon started, staring at Liam like he wanted to kill him. "He found out you worked here too. Elena, please leave. Let me handle this."

Elena was not going anywhere. She had to find out what was going on.

"And he asked you to make friends with me?" she asked Damon, and then decided she would deal with him after she handled Liam. She turned to face her ex. "Why?"

"It doesn't matter why," Liam replied, infuriating her. "You should have kept your word, Damon."

"She doesn't want you," Damon told Liam, taking a step towards him. "I don't know what you want me to do, Liam. Me being friends with her wasn't going to bring her back to you."

Liam punched his fist into the wall, making Elena jump. "I wanted inside information on her, who she was seeing, where she was going. Yet you end up sleeping with her? I did you a favour, Damon, and this is how you repay me?"

Elena gritted her teeth, trying to piece it all together from the information that was being thrown around, since no one would answer her questions.

Damon looked at her. "Elena, please wait outside."

"No," she seethed, crossing her arm over her chest. Damon obviously wanted her out of here for a reason, something he didn't want her to know. "This involves me, and I'm not going anywhere until we get to the bottom of this."

She ignored the bad feeling in her stomach, the pain in her chest. So Damon didn't just start talking to her because he 'couldn't stay away anymore' or whatever lie he said; it was because Liam had asked him to befriend her, so he could keep an eye on what she was up to. Basically, Damon was meant to spy on her. Liam was a creep, so that didn't surprise her, although she was disturbed by it, but what she really wanted to know was why Damon went along with it. Liam said he did Damon a favour—was this his repayment? She was just a pawn to these men, and it really hurt her that Damon only spoke to her because he had to. It pissed her off too. She should have known—when something seemed too good, it usually was.

"Is that why you gave me that whole 'no commitment' shit, because this is all some game to you?" she asked Damon, trying to school her expression.

Liam laughed, and it was a dark, hollow sound. "You don't know what Damon is like with women? I thought you would be smarter than this, Elena. You left me because I cheated, but Damon here is the biggest man-whore out there. He doesn't give a damn about women. Or apparently about his friends either."

Liam stormed out, like he was the one wronged here. Like he wasn't a stalking psychopath, leaving Damon and Elena alone in the room.

"This is ridiculous" was all Elena could manage to say.

"He asked me to keep an eye on you, to see if you were dating anyone," Damon said, swallowing. "Everything between us is real, Elena. I did notice you from the very start; everything I said to you is true. I owed Liam a favour and he called it in. It seemed harmless and I couldn't say no, not after what he did for me. I'm sorry, I didn't think anyone would get hurt from it. Liam may come off a little…strong, but he is innocent. He wouldn't do anything to hurt you. I would kill him if he even tried."

Well, wasn't Damon the hero all of a sudden.

"Makes sense why you came and sat with me at lunch all of a sudden," Elena said, hugging herself. "Wow, Damon. I didn't see this one coming, that's for sure. What did Liam do for you?"

Damon stayed silent, his jaw tightened.

She stared at him, and he stared at her.

It was Damon who looked away first.

She realised then that he wasn't going to tell her.

This whole thing, which felt like juvenile shit, concerned her, and he wasn't even going to explain it to her.

He would rather lose her than trust her.

If that wasn't a kick in the shins, Elena didn't know what was.

She nodded in understanding and walked out of his office, closing the door behind her. She was in a completely different mood than she was in when she walked into his office.

She didn't know what to think anymore.

She was angry. She was hurt. She was curious.

What other secrets was Damon hiding?

x x x

Damon tried to talk to Elena throughout the rest of the day, but she ignored all attempts. She even left early, before he could catch her. On the drive home, Elena stopped and grabbed some groceries, thinking that cooking something fancy would help her stay busy and keep her mind off things tonight. Save her from picking up the phone and calling Damon. Maybe he would drop by, maybe he wouldn't, but there was no point in him coming if he didn't want to talk about everything. She couldn't stand Liam, and it annoyed her that the two of them were friends. Maybe they hung around the same uptight crowd? A doctor and a lawyer walk into a bar…It sounded like the start of a bad joke.

When she pulled into her driveway and saw Damon already there, annoyance flashed through her. She didn't know why. Maybe she wanted a little time alone. She opened her car door, and he quickly stepped up to help her carry the groceries inside.

"What are you doing here, Damon?" she asked, feeling a little tired all of a sudden. "Unless you want to tell me everything, we don't have anything else to talk about."

"It is personal, Elena," Damon said, walking inside behind her, arms full of bags. "I will tell you, but you need to understand that this isn't easy for me."

"Okay," she agreed, starting to put away all the groceries.

"Can I help?"

"No, you sit down," she said, methodically unpacking. "And start talking."

Damon sat down, but didn't look too happy about it. She couldn't care less though; she just wanted an explanation.

"Liam and I have known each other for a while," he started, undoing the top buttons on his shirt, like he was feeling constricted all of a sudden. "We are not close, we just know some of the same people. We have spend some time hanging out. We go to the same parties."

"And?"

"And," he continued, swallowing loudly, "I needed a favour. He did it for me. Then, a year later, he asked for one back. He asked me to keep an eye on you, and to find out if you are dating anyone. He wanted you back."

"Like that is going to happen," Elena grumbled, closing the fridge and coming to stand in front of him.

"I have always thought that you are beautiful, Elena. Mesmerising. Magical. You have something about you. I stayed away because I was trying to be a good man, and a good man doesn't take a good woman, unless he has the intention of loving her. You don't play around with a woman like that. You don't see a strong, beautiful woman and think, 'Oh, I'm going to sleep with that.' At least, I don't."

"Go on," she said softly.

"He gave me an excuse to talk to you, to get to know you. I told him you were single, and I did tell him you were going out on a dinner date one night, even though later you admitted that it wasn't a date, you were just out with Caroline."

"So, that was why he showed up at dinner?" she asked, eyes going wide as saucers. "How did he know which restaurant I would be at?"

"I don't know," Damon said, looking slightly disturbed. "Damn."

"He had a date with him too. Did he stalk me while he had a woman with him?" Elena asked, voice rising. "Do you see what a psycho he is? And you call him a friend? I'm going to get a restraining order against him, seriously."

"Probably a good idea," he muttered. "I will handle him. He won't even look in your direction again."

"What did he do for you, Damon?"

When Damon looked up at her, there was pain etched across his face, and suddenly Elena wished she could take the question back.

"My ex-girlfriend was pregnant," he said, and she suddenly felt like an insensitive bitch, because when he said it was personal, he meant it was personal.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want," she said quickly. "I'm sorry, Damon. I shouldn't have pushed you."

This was the last thing she thought it would be about though. She thought maybe Liam lied for him, took one for the team or something, she didn't know. She didn't think it would be a story that started out like that. Maybe Liam was her doctor. He said she was pregnant, so maybe she lost the baby?

She felt terrible.

She melted into him and wrapped her arms around him. She didn't want to see him upset, or hurt, or living the past again. He was a dick, no doubt, and only spoke to her because of Liam, but then he went against Liam's wishes to be with her, and he wouldn't have done that if she hadn't grown on him in some way.

She was like a fungus.

She grew on him, and then he wanted her, so he took her, Liam could be damned.

"It's okay," Damon said, pulling her onto his lap. "She was pregnant, but then she told me that she lost the baby."

"I'm sorry," Elena whispered, resting her face on his chest. "Was Liam her doctor?"

"He wasn't her doctor, no," he answered, taking a deep breath. "I heard something. Her sister told me that she didn't lose the baby, but that she got rid of it when I didn't propose after she told me she was pregnant. She thought the baby meant her getting a ring on her finger, and then when I didn't…"

Her jaw dropped open.

No wonder Damon had trust issues.

"So I got Liam to call up, using his position to find out what happened. He pretended to be her GP to get the information. Apparently, it was true, she did have an abortion."

Oh dear.

This was terrible.

"I'm sorry," Elena mumbled again, knowing it was nowhere near enough but unable to come up with the words. She was so awkward in these situations. She wanted to make things better but didn't know how, so she just tightened her hold on him, silently letting him know that she was here for him.

"It's fine, Elena," Damon rumbled, running his hands down my back. "I just don't talk about it. To anyone, okay? So that's what Liam did for me. And when he asked me for such a small favour in return, to just be around you, how could I have said no? And I'm glad that I didn't, because then I never would have gotten to know you."

 _Does everything happen for a reason?_

Elena didn't like what Damon did and it pissed her off, a lot, but she could see his side of it. She just didn't know what to do now. It was like something had shifted between them, and she was not sure if it was a good or bad thing.

"I'm sorry too," he said, pushing her hair back behind her ear. "I don't want you to think that I didn't notice you before Liam asked that of me, because I always have. I just didn't want to mess up your life. I still don't, but after I started being around you, I just wanted more, and more, and then it was too late to turn back. I know it is selfish of me, and if I was a better man I would leave you alone, but apparently I'm not."

"Is it bad that I'm glad you are not?" she teased, lightening the mood. "It is okay, Damon. I just wish that you had told me, so I didn't have to hear it from a man I can't stand."

"Yes, I know. I made a mistake," Damon said, lifting her chin with his fingers. "Can you forgive me?"

"Consider it forgiven," she told him, kissing his lips once.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the support and wonderful reviews. I'm really excited to know my readers are enjoying this story:)**

 **So, what do you guys/gals think? Liam was a bastard, wasn't he? I have never liked him in TVD, LOL! But Damon was also wrong in this situation. What would happen to our favourite couple? Watch the space...**


	16. Chapter 16

When did sex become lovemaking? After you fell in love, or after you acknowledged it and said 'I love you'? Did the words have to be spoken out loud to mean anything? As Elena lied in bed wrapped in Damon's arms, she wondered if they had just made love. It felt like it, but she would be stupid to think anything of it. The very last thing she needed was false hope. Damon always looked into her eyes, and held her tenderly. He sometimes kissed her forehead too, but tonight, there was something else between them. Almost like their emotional connection was stronger. Maybe it was because his guards weren't up as high anymore? That must be it.

"What did Liam mean when he said all that stuff about you and women?" Elena found herself asking. Not the best pillow talk, but it had been playing on her mind. So far, they had been open and honest with each other tonight, and she would like that to continue.

"Just that I have been with my fair share, I guess," Damon rumbled, which was pretty much what she had been thinking. He had probably been with an uncountable number of women, and after his ex-girlfriend he didn't want to trust and commit to just a single one.

It made sense—Elena guessed. If you wanted true love though, you needed to let your guard down at some point. Vulnerability could be beautiful, and not everyone used it against you.

"What's your number?" she asked, grinning into the darkness. "Fifty? Sixty? A hundred?"

"I don't know, Elena," he said, tickling her ribs. "And that's the truth."

"You have lost count?"

She found that a little sad, for some reason.

"Yeah," he admitted, kissing the back of her neck. "Do we have to talk about all of this right now?"

"I guess not." She yawned. "Today was drama-filled, wasn't it?"

His reply was a light snore.

Elena smiled and closed her eyes, burying herself deeper in to him.

x x x

The next day after work, Elena rang Liam to tell him that if she caught him following her around again, she would be filing a restraining order.

"I wouldn't touch any woman after they have been with Damon," Liam haughtily informed her. "You have no idea what kind of man he is, Elena."

"You are friends with him," she pointed out.

"Yeah, but I'm not sleeping with him," he retorted. "He will never settle down with you. Ever. You will never be the only woman he distracts himself with, and that's all that you all are, distractions."

Elena pondered that while Liam continued with his rant.

"Why don't you ask him the truth? You won't believe what I tell you. Ask him about his women."

His women?

"Don't follow me again, Liam," Elena said, hanging up on him.

She couldn't get his words out of her head though. Damon's women?

The whole situation was a difficult one. Damon had never made any promises, not even exclusivity, but he had been treating her like his girlfriend. Was she meant to believe words or actions?

 _Talk about mixed signals._

Elena hadn't been overthinking things recently; she had just been enjoying her time with Damon, and it had been great. She was curious to know what Liam was on about though, especially since she now knew that Damon did keep secrets. It was hard not knowing where you stood with someone. Really hard. You tried to think about everything they had said, tried to read their actions and words, even though they had told you something different. It was like she was addicted to him. She knew Damon was probably not good for me, but giving him up wasn't an option. She had decided she needed to stop being weak and just talk to him about it. She thought the reason she was so hesitant was because she knew she was going to find out something she didn't like.

A few hours later, when Damon arrived, Liam's words were still running through Elena's mind, and she knew she had to ask him. If more terrible stuffs came out, something she didn't like, she was going to have to decide to either deal with it, or step away from whatever this was they had together.

The problem?

They were not exclusive.

If Damon had been with someone else, she couldn't get mad, although she knew she would. This whole situation was a mess, and Elena had a feeling that she should have bailed when he told her the rules of being with him.

"Can we talk about something?" Elena asked as Damon joined her on the couch.

"Sure," Damon said, kissing her cheek. He pressed his lips to her ear next. "We can talk about anything you want, but first…I want you, Elena. I watched you saunter around in your red heels all day long, that tight skirt cupping your hip like a glove, your beautiful breasts pressing against your shirt. I have been hard all day, so you need to take care of that for me."

Her breath hitched at his words.

Damon slid his hand up her thigh, letting it linger there without bringing it up just that little bit more to touch her.

"Do I?" she asked, licking her lips.

He took her hand and put it on his male hardness. Elena could feel it straining through his jeans. "You caused this, so yes."

She grinned and leaned over to kiss him, completely forgetting about everything except what she was about to do to him.

x x x

On Friday night, Damon took Elena to a new bar that just opened, owned by his friend Enzo. Elena saw Enzo the night she was on the double date and bumped into Damon, the first night he slept over.

"Nice to finally meet you," Enzo said to Elena, shaking her hand. When he brought it to his lips, she knew he was a ladies' man, just like the man by her side.

"You too," Elena said, smiling at him. "This place is amazing!"

"Glad you think so," Enzo replied, looking at Damon. "I don't know how you got her, Damon, I really don't."

Damon ignored his friend and kissed the top of Elena's head. "What do you want to drink? The usual, or do you want to live on the wild side and try something new?"

"Well, when you put it like that," she started, wrapping her arm around his waist, "surprise me."

"Keep an eye on her," Damon told Enzo, then headed to the bar.

Elena scanned the room, and she was glad she wore a black dress instead of skinny jeans—all the women were very dressed up. It was a high-class bar, not like the place she and Caroline practically called their home. Her phone vibrated, and she knew it was her mother calling her. Her mother lived over east and would usually call her once a month to catch up on everything that was going on in their lives. She put her phone on silent and made a mental reminder to call her mother tomorrow morning.

"Do you want to sit down?" Enzo asked Elena, gesturing to a nearby table. He was dressed well, in a black shirt and dress pants, and she was right, he was very good-looking.

 _Do sexy men only make friends with other sexy men?_ Elena wondered.

It was like they hung out in packs or something. She should bring Caroline out with her next time Damon's friends were going to be around. Of course, only if things didn't work out well with her and Wes.

"Sure," Elena said, and Enzo ushered her to the table with a hand lightly on her shoulder. She sat down and he did the same.

"Aren't you meant to be mingling?" she asked him, trying to make small talk.

"Not if I don't feel like it," he replied, grinning.

Damon returned with two drinks in hand, and flashed Enzo an unhappy look. "There you are."

"I thought the lady would be more comfortable sitting," Enzo told him, threading his hands together and resting them on the table.

Damon sat next to her, placing her drink in front of her.

"Thank you," she said, bringing the glass to her lips. The drink was red and when the liquid hit her tongue, she realised it was something she had never tasted before.

Whatever it was, it was delicious.

"You like it?"

Elena nodded. "It is good."

"It is a drink Enzo made up."

Her eyes widened. "That is impressive."

Enzo grinned and stood. "And on that note, I'm going to be social. Lovely to meet you, Elena. Give me a call when you get sick of Damon."

With a cheeky grin, he left.

And Elena could see why Damon didn't want Enzo near her on that first night.

x x x

Elena was reapplying her lipstick in the bathroom when a beautiful woman with long blonde hair walked in, followed by another pretty girl, this one with dark hair and eyes.

"Are you Damon's woman?" the blonde asked, coming to stand at the sink next to Elena.

"Who are you?" Elena asked her, because even she didn't know the answer to that question, as sad as it was.

The blonde smirked at her. It was a knowing smirk, and Elena didn't like it.

"I was one of his women," she said, turning to face Elena, waiting for her to react.

Her words were similar to Liam's, and Elena knew that something wasn't right.

Her heart stopped beating, and she turned herself to shutdown mode. This would keep her from overreacting. She would rather show no emotion, and therefore no weakness.

"And what does that mean, exactly?" Elena asked, tilting her head to the side. "What do you want?"

The dark-haired girl grabbed her friend's arm. "Rebecca, let's go."

"No," Rebecca told her friend emphatically. "Because I don't think Damon has been completely honest with this one. Damon Salvatore doesn't date, not exactly. His version of dating is to be with a few different women at the same time," she explained, gauging Elena's reaction. "He doesn't sleep with randoms. He just has a bunch of women on call, usually about four of them, who he will see on different nights of the week. He will go out with them, sleep with them, talk to them, everything. It is like having a real boyfriend for the most part, except for the fact that he is doing everything he is doing with you with several other women as well."

Elena kept her expression neutral, but inside she was dying.

Her chest felt constricted.

She put her lipstick in her purse and moved to leave. Rebecca grabbed her arm and Elena turned to the blonde, her eyes narrowed, chin lifted. "What?"

"Nothing," Rebecca said, letting go of her.

Elena turned and left the bathroom, but instead of going back to Damon, she walked to the exit. She got into a taxi, and then she went straight home.

Caroline was home alone when she got there, so she jumped into her friend's bed and told her everything.

Elena cried.

It was usually Caroline crying to her but, for the first time ever, their roles were reversed.

Elena was the one crying, and Caroline was the one soothing her.

Someone banged on the door, and Elena knew it was Damon.

They didn't answer.

She put her hands on her ears, closed her eyes, and pretended tonight never happened.

* * *

 **I'm so, so glad that my readers enjoy this Delena story. Hopefully I have managed to bring out the chemistry and dynamics of our favourite couple in this story. Thank you so much for the support and wonderful reviews:)  
**


	17. Chapter 17

"You are not going to even give me a chance to explain?" Damon asked the next day.

Elena was on the couch, watching TV, a tub of ice cream in her hand.

"Nope," she replied, not even wanting to look directly at him.

"Rebecca told me she spoke to you. You need to listen to me, Elena—"

"How did you even get in?" she asked, closing the lid on the ice cream.

"I didn't give Caroline much of a choice."

He sat down next to her, turning her face towards him so she had no choice but to look into those smouldering blue-grey eyes.

"You knew."

"I knew what?" Damon asked softly, eyes scanning her face.

"You knew that I was going to ask you about something you didn't want to explain, so you distracted me instead."

The night Elena was going to ask Damon about what Liam told him, and he said 'sex first, questions later.' How manipulative could a person be? How deceiving? Was everything he told her a lie? Was she just one of many to him? Yeah, maybe she was his favourite, considering he did spend a lot of time with her, but so what? Maybe she was just his flavour of the month. Or for two months, as it had been.

"What did she tell you?" Damon demanded, eyes flashing with worry, and maybe even a little panic.

"You know, Liam told me to ask you about your women. I was going to, that night, but then I didn't. Would you have told me the truth?" Elena asked, rushing the words out. She took a deep breath and continued. "I know you said we are not exclusive, so you are probably going to tell me that I can't be mad, even though, when you said that, this is not what I was thinking. I didn't think you would have a sex squad, and I sure didn't think you would be adding me to it. Jesus, Damon!"

Damon went still next to her. Dropping his hand from her face, he said, "It is not like that, Elena. At least it wasn't with you."

"I will bet," she said, shaking her head. "I can't believe this. How stupid have I been? You failed to mention you have a squad of women on speed dial, just waiting for you to call on them, Damon. You said we are not exclusive, yes, but not that I was joining a sex harem."

"Elena, I didn't even—"

"You gave me the attention a boyfriend would give a girlfriend! How the hell did you fit the other women in? It must be a full-time job keeping so many women happy!" she yelled, gritting her teeth together. "You gave me more attention than any of my ex-boyfriends did, yet we were nothing. Nothing. Do you know crazy is this?"

"Baby," Damon whispered, trying to hold her. "You need to listen to me, please. Just let me explain."

"So you can twist it around and manipulate me again? You always have the upper hand, Damon, always one step ahead of me. You win. I don't want to play anymore. I let you in…" Elena stopped, wiping the tears that started to drip down her cheek of their own accord. "I let you in, Damon. I never let people in, but you…I gave you a chance. I trusted you."

"What the hell, Elena, you are breaking my heart. You need to calm down, take deep breaths. Everything Rebecca said isn't the truth, okay?"

"So you don't have a sex squad?"

Damon went silent.

That was the answer she needed.

"Get out, Damon."

He reached out to her, but she turned away.

Damon stood and then said, "I will be back tomorrow. There is no point trying to talk to you when you are like this."

He left.

And she cried some more.

x x x

Elena spent all of Sunday on the couch too, dreading tomorrow, when she would have to see Damon at work. She heard him knocking on the door around lunchtime, but she didn't open it; she just pretended that no one was home. He called, she didn't pick up. He sent messages, she didn't read them. She only ate and slept. She would just give herself today, but then tomorrow she needed to be back in fine form. She needed to walk into work with her head held high. She needed to appear unaffected.

But today? Today, Elena got to do whatever she wanted to try and stop the pain that a broken heart brought. She didn't understand Damon. How could he act so loving and sweet towards her? Was it like that with everyone in his cabinet? Was he so broken that he couldn't just spend time with one woman? Did he need backups? How did his mind work? He said he could explain, but she didn't see how. When he meant they weren't exclusive, he wasn't kidding, was he?

Elena didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to react. She didn't know how to get over this mess.

 _Why me?_

 _I'm destined to be alone forever, am I?_

Maybe she should just start buying puppies now, so she could start being a crazy dog lady. How was she meant to trust another man after this? Although she wouldn't go to such drastic measures to protect herself as Damon did. The sad thing was she never would have betrayed him. She would never hurt him, lie or cheat.

Because she loved Damon.

And that thought made Elena cry even harder.

x x x

Today was day three of no Damon, and Elena was back at work. After crying pretty much all day yesterday, she felt much better—dead inside, but much better. She was a strong, independent woman, and she could do this. She could be professional. Damon Salvatore was dead to her.

When she saw him, she avoided eye contact with him. Those white shirts she loved so much on him? They now annoyed her. Those smouldering blue-grey eyes? She never wanted to look into them again.

Damon was standing with Alaric, so Elena knew he couldn't say anything to her.

"Good morning," she greeted them, though only looking at Alaric.

"Morning, Elena," Alaric said, nodding towards her. "Did you bring me coffee?"

"Nope."

Alaric grinned and headed to his office, while Damon lingered.

"Elena…"

"Anything I can help you with, Mr Salvatore?" Elena asked, her voice cold.

"Damn," Damon muttered, taking a deep breath and looking down at his hands. "Everything you heard, it is true. Or, at least, it was true. With you though, it was different. I didn't message any other women, didn't see any other women. All I saw was you, Elena."

Elena handed him a piece of paper. "Here is your schedule for the day. I will send your first client in when they arrive."

Damon looked directly at her, pain etched all over his handsome face. "Don't do this, Elena. We need to talk, properly."

"I have heard enough," she said quietly, needing to protect herself. She had let this gone too far, let her desire for Damon override her better judgement, her common sense. There was no place for her in his life. She didn't want to always be wondering where he was, who he was with, knowing that he was used to having the affections of more than one woman.

She would always be wondering if she was enough, and she shouldn't have to do that. She was enough, more than enough, and the right man would make her feel it.

She was Elena Gilbert. She was far from perfect, but she knew what she deserved, and that was not being lied to, or being made to look like a fool.

The elevators opened and Damon's client walked in. With no other choice, Damon left the topic alone and escorted the gentleman into his office. He glanced at Elena before he closed the door, his eyes pleading to hear him out, to understand.

She looked away first.

When lunchtime rolled around, Elena left the office first, heading to her usual lunch spot. She sat alone, like she always would. She ordered the same thing. She mentally prepared herself that this was now her life again.

But at least she had her peace of mind.

She hated that she missed Damon. She really did, and it had only been a few days. But she focused on the type of man he was. She didn't believe in men changing, at least not for the better. How cynical did that sound? But she had found it to be true.

She had hoped she would be his exception, but she never truly knew what she was up against. She thought he just had trust issues from what happened with his ex-girlfriend, not that he had built his walls up so high that he had constructed his own dating rules to ensure he didn't get hurt again. Men must worship Damon—multiple women, money and good looks. The man had everything. It was kind of impressive. How did he talk these women into agreeing? She didn't like to share but, then again, who was she to talk? She blindly entered this agreement with him because she liked him so much, because he seemed to like her so much. Was she secretly hoping that he would change his mind? That he would want me to be his girlfriend? That he would make a leap to commit to another woman again?

Yes, yes, she was.

She was an idiot.

"Mr Salvatore, here is the folder you requested," Elena said, speaking very formally. She slid the folder onto his desk and retreated.

"Can you stop calling me 'Mr Salvatore'?" Damon growled, face going a little red.

"No," Elena replied simply, then added, "Mr Salvatore," just to annoy him.

Damon looked like he wanted to strangle her.

She blinked slowly, watching him calmly. They had a silent conversation. Damon thought she was being ridiculous, Elena thought he was an asshole. He reminded her of all the times they had spent together, laughing and talking. She reminded him about the time he lied to her.

Damon sighed. "You don't know the full story."

"I know enough."

How things could change in just a few days.

Damon meant everything to her. And now?

Now, he was her nemesis.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the support. I can't believe there are more than 200 reviews so far. I'm really happy to know my readers are enjoying this story as much as I do. I promise I will try my best to write Delena stories and share them with my readers:)**


	18. Chapter 18

_Two Weeks Later_

"Say something" by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera played on Elena's way to work the next morning. She stared down at her black heels in the elevator, then lifted her head as the doors opened. She was early, so she knew that no one would be here yet. Coffee and a bag of lollies in her hands, she was ready to handle the day. Damon was the first to arrive; she was messaging Caroline when he approached.

"You are the most stubborn, hard-headed woman I have ever met in my life," he growled.

"Tell me more," she was deadpan, not bothering to lift her head.

"Oh, now you are going to let me talk?"

He sounded pissed.

 _Why is he so angry? Maybe the squad needs to up their game, keep him happier._

Elena lifted her head and looked at him. Damn, Damon was so handsome. Even when he was angry. "Look, Damon. I don't know what you want from me. You can't seriously expect me to be okay with everything I have learned about you."

"All I asked from you was for you to hear me out, let me explain, but you can't even give me that. It has been two weeks, and all I have gotten from you is death threats, and I actually prefer those to when you are ignoring me."

"I have never given you death threats!" Elena responded, her tone a little defensive.

"You said that you hope I get run over by a car!" Damon growled, a muscle ticking in his jaw. "You have been nothing but a bitch, not letting me get one word in! You are acting like I cheated on you or something, when I didn't!"

"That was a hope, not a threat," she said, smiling evilly. So she had said some things she was not proud of, but when she was angry or hurt, sometimes she couldn't help what came out of her mouth.

"Maybe you are not who I thought you are," Damon said, sounding disappointed, which really set Elena on edge.

He was disappointed?

What was that supposed to mean?

"Don't you dare turn this around on me," Elena said, gritting her teeth together. "I told you no more secrets, Damon. I told you I want to hear things from you, not from random people trying to hurt me by letting me know about the shit you have done. I'm sick of looking like an idiot because you keep me in the dark. You think the fact that you have multiple women at your beck and call is not something you should tell me?"

"I don't have a sex squad," he yelled, leaning closer to her. "You would know this if you listened to what I'm saying, instead of being stubborn! Maybe you shouldn't listen to what others tell you!"

"Oh, so there's no truth to Rebecca's accusations? You admitted it was true, so don't bother giving me that bullshit!" She fired back at him. They shouldn't be having this conversation at work, but then again, she didn't exactly give him any other options.

"What she told you was true. Was, not is…" Damon said, taking a deep breath. The elevators opened and two people got out, so he took a step back, gave her a look that said 'this isn't over' then walked away.

But it was over, wasn't it?

What was he trying to say? He had a squad but got rid of it?

Conflicting thoughts ran through Elena's mind. Was she being stupid by not hearing him out? Was she being stubborn and hard-headed, like he said? Probably. She was stubborn and it was not one of her finest traits. She had also gone into self-protection mode—anything to keep her from not getting hurt any further. She guessed it depended on what she wanted out of this. Did she want to listen and work something out, or was that door now closed forever?

Was the Damon era a hundred percent over for her?

She shouldn't have just shut him out like that, without hearing his side of the story.

Maybe she should just talk to him.

x x x

 _Three Days Later_

When Elena saw Damon first thing in the morning, she had decided it was time she stopped being a bitch and just listened to what he had to say. She wanted to talk to him for a few days now, but put it off every time. She could hold a mean grudge, but she couldn't keep ignoring him forever. She needed to hear him out, and after that, she could decide what to do—it was only fair. She should hear him out once and for all, and see how he thought he could rectify this. However, when she saw him, she could sense that something was different. When Damon stopped by her table, he didn't try to talk to her about anything. In fact, he was brisk and straight to the point. His eyes no longer pleaded with her, and his tone was no longer conciliatory.

"Good morning. Can you reschedule my afternoon appointments today?" Damon asked, waiting for her reply, his expression blank. He gave her nothing—no emotion, no anything.

"Sure," Elena said, making a note on the Post-it in front of her. "Anything else?"

"No, that's it," he replied, then went inside his office.

Elena blinked.

 _So, that's it, huh?_

No more chasing, no more begging to give her explanations?

She would not be upset by this. It was what she wanted, right?

A few hours later, Elena was typing away furiously on her laptop when a sultry voice interrupted her.

"Excuse me, could you please tell Damon that Valarie is here. He is expecting me."

Elena lifted her head in a flash.

Standing in front of her is a stunning woman. She had her hair pulled back in a high ponytail, and she was dressed fashionably, in skinny jeans and a beige blazer.

She looked like a model.

"Ummm, yeah, sure," Elena said, picking up the phone and hitting the button for Damon's office.

"Yes, Elena," he answered, sounding distracted.

"Valarie is here to see you," she said, keeping her tone even.

"Okay, tell her I will be out in a minute."

She stayed silent.

Who the hell was Valarie?

"Elena?"

She hung up on him and looked up at what was possibly her replacement. "He will be out in a minute."

"Thanks," Valarie replied, beaming at her.

What was Valarie so happy about?

Bitch.

She must be sleeping with Damon. Why else would she be so happy?

Valarie took a seat, and Elena sat at her desk, silently fuming.

How was she meant to react to this? Better yet, why was she panicking?

Damon came out of his office and, without so much as sparing Elena a glance, left with Valarie. Elena didn't want to admit how long her eyes stayed on those elevator doors, but when he finally returned an hour later, alone, she quickly averted her gaze.

He came over to her and said, "Alaric has gone home because he is not feeling well. He said to ask you to cancel his two meetings."

"Okay," she replied, her jaw tight.

Damon paused and leaned on her desk. "What is wrong?"

"Why would something be wrong?" she asked, glancing up at him, making sure her expression stayed blank.

"I don't know," Damon said, studying her. "You tell me."

"Everything is fine," she snapped, regretting it instantly. She exhaled and picked up the phone. "I better call Alaric's clients, if you will excuse me."

She glanced up into those blue-grey eyes, and…Was that amusement flashing there? She put the phone back down and narrowed her eyes. "What is so funny?"

"Nothing," Damon said, shrugging those broad shoulders of his. "Just you. You are cute when you are all annoyed and shitty."

She blinked. "Okay, goodbye now."

He waved, smiling widely, and disappeared into his office.

What just happened? He thought she was cute because she was annoyed that a beautiful woman just came here to see him? A woman he was possibly having sex with? Cute?!

Damn Damon Salvatore.

Elena called Alaric's clients and then returned to brooding about Damon and his mysterious lady friend. If he was sleeping with her, and he brought her here knowing that she would see her, he really was an asshole. She scrubbed her hand down her face, wondering what her next move should be. Should she call him out on it? Truthfully, she was dying for the confrontation, but that might not be the best way to go. Damon was a master at games, and he was probably anticipating that from her. Hell, he probably did it just to get a rise out of her. How did he bring her down to his level? Because right now, all Elena wanted to do was beat him at his own game.

She tapped her fingernails on her desk, feeling agitated and off-kilter. What if this wasn't a game to him though? What if he decided she wasn't worth the effort because she wouldn't hear him out? She guessed she could have at least listened to him, but at that point she didn't want to give him a chance to work his way in, to get close enough to hurt her again. Her walls were up right now…and maybe they were too high for him to climb.

What she needed to remember was that Damon was broken too.

Maybe the broken didn't want to fight. Maybe they wanted to be fought for.

No. It had to be him playing games. The Damon she knew wouldn't give up so easily, at least without having his say.

He had always liked to have the upper hand, the control.

And now he had it, because she was left here wondering who that woman was, and what they were up to.

But not for long.

x x x

"What are you doing?" Damon asked, sounding suspicious as Elena stepped into his office the next morning.

All last night, she had wondered to herself why the hell she suddenly wasn't so angry at him. She was more concerned with him having gotten over her. She was not over him, so how was that fair? She was just ready to hear him out, to listen to what he had to say, and he had flipped the switch on her, pretending like he didn't care anymore. She didn't know how to react to this. All she knew was that she was reacting.

"I brought you some coffee," she said, smiling sweetly. She placed the coffee on his desk, inwardly cheering when she heard his soft growl as she leaned forward, showing off my cleavage.

"You never bring anyone coffee." Damon narrowed his gaze, which dropped to her breasts then back up to her eyes again. "What's the catch?"

"No catch, Damon," Elena replied, shrugging. She straightened and wandered back to the door with an extra sway in her hips. Closing the door behind her, she checked that no one was around then did up two of the buttons she undid. A few minutes later, Damon came over to her desk with the coffee in his hand.

"What are you up to?" he asked, taking a sip but keeping his eyes on her.

"Nothing," Elena said, brow furrowing. "It is just coffee, Damon."

"And Hell is just a sauna," he muttered under his breath. "So, you don't have anything you want to talk to me about?"

He wanted her to ask about yesterday, about the woman who came in, but she was not going to. He started this game, but she was going to end it.

"Like what?" Elena questioned, tilting her head like a confused puppy.

"I don't know," he said, clearing his throat. "Thanks for the coffee. Pretty sure it is the first time you have ever brought anyone in the office any."

"It is."

"Can we have lunch together today?" he asked, studying her. "Maybe we can finally have that long-overdue talk."

"I actually have a lunch date," Elena told him, sounding apologetic. "How about tomorrow?"

"Lunch date with whom?" Damon asked, gripping onto the edge of her desk, knuckles going white.

"Just a…friend," she replied, leaning back in her chair. "So, tomorrow?"

"This friend is a man?" he asked, jaw clenched.

"Yeah, why?" she asked nonchalantly. She picked up a pen and started to jot down a to-do list.

"You are doing this because of what happened yesterday," Damon said after a few moments. "Aren't you? Elena—"

"What happened yesterday?" she repeated, shrugging. "Damon, I have to get back to work, and you have to be in court soon. We can talk about this later."

Damon gritted his teeth together and leaned forward on her desk. "Maybe instead of going to court, I will tag along on your lunch date."

"Why would you do that?" she asked, blinking slowly. "You are being ridiculous."

Damon cursed under his breath, then snarled, "Fine, do whatever the hell you want."

"Thanks for the permission," Elena said cheerily, ignoring his anger. The man who was so emotionless, who swore nothing could touch him, was losing his temper.

Interesting.

Damon stormed off into his office.

Lunchtime came around, Damon was in court and Jesse, Caroline's cousin brother, came to take her out for lunch. Jesse was like a brother to her. He was much taller than her, and he was a personal trainer, so he was all buff and ripped. He was also covered in tattoos.

"Hey, Elena," Jesse greeted her with a huge grin.

"Hey, Jesse," Elena replied, pulling him in for a big hug. "It has been too long."

"I know," he said. "Let's go get something to eat and you can tell me everything you have been up to."

"Sounds good," she agreed, grabbing her bag. They linked their arms and headed into the elevator.

Jesse may be like a brother, but she didn't lie to Damon—he was a man.

How Damon had chosen to take that was his problem.

When Damon returned from court, he came straight to Elena, a determined look on his face. "Did you have your lunch date?"

"Yep," she said, popping the P.

"How was it?" he asked, looking contemplative. "Where did you meet the guy? Don't you think it is a little too soon for you to be having dates, especially when you can't even give me a few solid moments of your time to explain what the hell went wrong with us?

"Lunch was really great," Elena said, smiling warmly, ignoring the rest of his rant. "How was court?"

"Shit."

They both stayed silent, just staring at each other.

"She is my brother's wife," Damon said, giving the simple explanation.

Oh.

His brother's wife? Elena didn't see that coming at all. Damon's sister-in-law was a total babe. Still, he brought her in here knowing that she would assume otherwise, and make sure he didn't tell her who she was until she played the same game he did. Was she going to let him out of this, or keep playing? She had decide fair was fair; he put her out of her misery, so she would put him out of his.

"Caroline's cousin brother," she returned.

Damon nodded and muttered, "Good," then disappeared into his office.

Well, apparently that was sorted.

* * *

 **When will our favourite couple sort out their relationship? This game is definitely hurting both of them...  
**

 **Anyway, thank you for the support:)**


	19. Chapter 19

"Who sent you those flowers?" Damon asked, glaring at the sunflowers like they were his enemy.

Elena pursed her lips, and was about to tell him they were from her mother, but she had decided to annoy him a little first. Served him right for forgetting that today was her birthday.

"None of your business."

"Pretty sure it is."

"Nope."

"Elena—"

"Damon."

She saw him look at the card attached to the flowers, and she knew he was dying to read it. His fingers twitched, but he didn't move.

"Sunflowers are your favourite."

Oh, so he remembered that but not her birthday?

"I know," Elena said, looking over at them while smiling, then back at him. "They make me happy just looking at them."

"I can see that," he murmured, then added, "You promised that we would have lunch today. So, don't try and get out of it now."

She rolled her eyes. "I won't."

"Good."

Damon left and then another bouquet of flowers arrived for her, this time beautiful pink roses from Caroline. She smiled widely and added them to her collection. She loved flowers, and everyone close to her knew it.

Time rushed by quickly and, before Elena knew it, she was grabbing her bag and waiting for Damon to take her out for lunch.

"Hey," Damon said, rushing out of his office. "Ready?"

"Yep. Where are we going today?"

"Your usual place," he explained, surprising her.

The walk there was mostly silent, but she enjoyed having Damon in her presence. Even with all the mess going on, and even with him not even remembering her birthday, there was no one else she would rather spend it with. She didn't know if that was romantic or sad. Probably both.

Damon opened the door for her and waited for her to enter first. As soon as Elena walked in, her eyes widened at the sight before her. "Oh, my God."

No one was in the restaurant, and the place was covered in flowers.

Sunflowers, to be exact.

On the middle table, there was a wrapped present, red with a black bow, and also two plates and cutlery, obviously where they were meant to sit and eat. Damon closed the door and turned the sign to 'closed.'

"Damon," Elena whispered, shaking her head in amazement. "It is beautiful. How did you pull this off?"

There must be at least twenty bouquets of sunflowers, all in stunning glass vases, with a black bow on them. The vases had leaves artistically wrapped around the inside of the vase, very beautifully done.

"Happy birthday, beautiful," Damon said. "The restaurant owner knows you are, like, their best customer, and he didn't mind letting us have the place to ourselves for an hour," he explained, his chest brushing against her back.

A waitress came out from the back, smiling. "Are the two of you ready to order?"

Elena glanced around at all the flowers, seemingly in shock. No one had ever done anything like this for her before, put in so much effort to make her birthday special.

Damon answered the waitress, and led Elena to her seat, pulling the chair out for her.

She sat.

He did the same.

"So, you didn't forget my birthday," Elena said, thanking the waitress as she poured her some water.

"As if I would forget your birthday, Elena."

Elena smiled, and he smiled back.

"I wanted to talk to you about everything today, but it is your birthday, so I want you to enjoy it. We can talk later."

"Okay," Elena said, not wanting to get into an argument on her birthday either. She would rather just enjoy it, enjoy the peace between them today. It felt perfect.

"Do you want to open your present now?" Damon asked, nodding towards the gift sitting between them on the table.

"What is it?" she asked, staring inquisitively at the square-shaped box.

"Open it and see."

Elena reached out and took it in her hands. It was almost too pretty to open, but she pulled off the bow and ripped the wrapping away. Inside was a black box, a jewellery box. She opened it, and it contained the most beautiful diamond bracelet she had ever seen. Delicate and dainty, she absolutely loved it.

"It is beautiful, Damon," she said, staring at it in awe. "You didn't have to get me anything."

"I know," Damon replied, smiling. "But I wanted to."

He was so sweet. Why was he so sweet? That was playing dirty. She wanted to kiss him, but she knew now was not the time. Until they talked about everything that happened, there was no way she could touch him, because then it was going to be that much harder to take a step back if what they had to say to each other didn't work out for both of them.

"Thank you, Damon," Elena said softly, her voice filled with emotion. "Can you put it on for me?"

"Sure." Damon leaned over, helping her do up the clasp. "There you go. It looks perfect on you."

"It fits perfectly," she gushed, lifting her wrist.

"I guessed," he said, looking pretty pleased with himself. "Now, we better order or we will be late back to work."

"We are going to be late anyway."

"I know."

Apparently neither of them cared.

x x x

"Oh dear, look at the bling on your wrist," Caroline exclaimed, looking at Elena's bracelet at dinner that evening.

"Oh, this old thing?" Elena said coyly, touching the bracelet with her fingers. "Damon got it for me. I think it is the prettiest thing I have ever been given. The flowers were more than enough, he didn't have to get me this."

"It is stunning," Caroline replied, drinking some of her wine. "You get that when you have been nothing but a bitch to him recently? Imagine what you get when you are actually nice to him."

Elena rolled her eyes. "I don't want anything from him. I just want him. All of him."

"You need to tell him that."

"I will, as long as his explanation for what Rebecca told me pans out," Elena stated, scanning the restaurant. "He said it was true, but it isn't now. I'm hoping that means he stopped all that terrible things when he met me, but that's probably just wishful thinking, isn't it?"

"I don't know," Caroline said, fiddling with her hair. "You need to talk to him about it. I don't think it is wishful thinking, but I'm a romantic. Maybe you are his exception after all. Maybe when he met you, he changed his ways. Maybe you were enough for him. It is not saying there is anything lacking with his past women, but sometimes when you have that connection with someone, everything else pales in comparison. I know you are not someone who connects with people easily, which is why you are not letting this go, when normally you would have walked away by now. You want to fight though, because that damn connection is worth fighting for."

Caroline's words were all true. Elena hardly connected to people, and when she did, she never wanted to let go. All her friends had been friends for a long time. She didn't really add new people into her life much, unless someone amazing came along. Someone who made her wanted to open up to them, someone she craved to be around.

Did Damon feel the same way about her? She wasn't sure.

"Let's wait and see what he says, I guess."

"I think him doing that for your birthday says he wants you," Caroline added, clapping her hands together. "Shotgun bridesmaid!"

Elena put her hands in the air. "Okay, you need to calm down. There will be none of that."

But her friend was now in her own wedding dream land. "Don't even think about eloping. I'm planning you a huge-ass wedding that everyone will be talking about years from now."

Elena drank half of her glass of wine in one large gulp. "Okay, let's change the subject. How are things with Wes."

"They are pretty good," Caroline said, beaming. "Not as intense as you and Damon, but still great. He is amazing in bed, infatuated with me and we get along really well." She paused. "He could be more handsome though, but I can't be so choosy now, can I?"

Elena started choking on her wine. Caroline actually got up and came over to her, slapping her on the back. "Stop being so dramatic, Elena."

Elena glanced up at her friend. "Really? Seriously?"

Caroline grinned and kissed the top of Elena's head, then reclaimed her seat. "Did you like the roses? I know your mum always gets you the sunflowers, and now Damon, so I wanted to get you something a little different."

"Loved them," Elena told her friend, smiling. "Thank you, Caroline. You didn't have to. I thought you taking me out to dinner was going to be my present."

Caroline waved her hand in the air. "You are my best friend. If I can't spoil you a little then who can I spoil?"

Elena opened her mouth, but Caroline cut her off. "And don't say Wes. He is the one meant to be spoiling me."

Elena shook her head. "Poor Wes."

"Poor Damon."

"Touché," Elena said, raising her glass in the air. "To my ride-or-die bestie, here's to many more years of friendship to come."

"To our friendship," Caroline toasted.

They both drank.

* * *

 **I can't describe how excited and glad I'm to know my readers enjoy this story so much. There isn't any crime or mysterious stuff in this Delena story. I only want to write a story on Delena - the dynamics and chemistry of Delena. Hopefully I have managed to bring them out in our favourite I will try something more exciting in the next story, LOL!  
**

 **Thank you again for everything!**


	20. Chapter 20

Damon came over the next night; Caroline let him in then made herself scarce. Elena didn't expect him to drop by, so her hair was wrapped in a towel on top of her head, and she was still in her bathrobe because she couldn't be bothered getting changed after her shower. Instead, she was sitting in front of the TV and eating popcorn.

"Hey," Damon said, sitting down and giving her a once-over. "I decided I'm going to come here and talk, and you are going to sit there and listen."

"Okay," she agreed.

"Okay?" he repeated, looking suspicious.

"Yes, okay, I'm listening."

He took a deep breath. "Ever since I started talking to you, having lunch with you even as friends, I have never been with anyone else."

Relief mixed with pure happiness spread through Elena.

"Really?"

Damon nodded, reaching his hand out and taking hers. "But yes, what Rebecca said was true. I would never be exclusive to one woman; I would sleep with a few on different nights of the week. That was what I was used to. No commitments, no attachments, no feelings getting hurt. The women knew what they were getting into. There were no lies, just straight-up honesty."

"And when we got together, you assumed you could carry on that lifestyle?" Elena asked, remembering the 'no commitment speech' Damon gave her at the start. She assumed it was just about him being scared of letting another woman in, especially after his ex-girlfriend lied about losing his baby. That had to do damage to a man, and she guessed every other woman who wanted him had to pay for her mistake.

"Yes," he said, and Elena could feel her chest tighten. "I told myself that nothing had changed, but really everything had. I didn't want anyone else, Elena. I was never tempted, I only wanted you. I still only want you. There is no one else for me now. All that bullshit is over. There is no point trying to protect my heart anymore when it is already yours."

"You haven't been with anyone since we had our first lunch together?" Elena reiterated, placing her hand on her heart over her bathrobe.

"Of course not," he replied, grinning. "I can barely handle you, Elena, how the hell am I supposed to—"

She kissed him.

Damon tugged the towel off her head and fisted her hair, using it to pull her head back. "I want you, and no one else, okay?"

"Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?" she teased, her voice coming out breathy.

"No," he said against her lips. "I'm telling you that you are. You are mine."

He slammed his lips back down on hers and reached forward to undo the ties on her robe. Elena suddenly realised they were on the couch and Caroline could walk out anytime—in fact, she had probably been listening to the whole conversation—so Elena stood and led Damon back to her bedroom.

As soon as the door was shut, her robe was on the floor; she had nothing on underneath. Her hair was still slightly damp, but she ignored it and concentrated on Damon, who took his time taking off his shoes and undressing, while she stood there naked, their eyes connected. He stalked over to her, brushing his fingers over her nipples. She squirmed a little, something he didn't miss, going by the amusement that danced in his heavy-lidded blue-grey eyes. He circled her, stopping when he was behind her. His hands came around and squeezed her breasts as he kissed up the side of her neck, then down again, concentrating on the spot he knew would drive crazy. She tilted her head to the side to give him more access, loving the feel of his mouth on her skin again. And even better, this time she knew Damon was all hers. No more stressing about where she stood with this man, because now she knew.

And it was the best feeling in the world.

Damon reached down and slid his finger against her clit. "Are you wet for me?"

"Yes," Elena replied in a low, husky voice.

He slid his finger inside of her. "Let me check, just to be sure."

"Mmmmm," he moaned, then sat down and pulled her so she was sitting on his lap, his front pressed against her back. He pushed her forward and entered her slowly. She put her legs on the side of his then pushed up and down, using the power in her thighs.

"Damon," Elena whispered, as he brushed her hair to the side and kissed her neck again. He then pushed her forward with a hand on the centre of her back and started thrusting in and out of her, taking over. Suddenly, Damon lifted her, turned her around so she was facing him, pushed her back down on him and started kissing her hungrily.

She would never get tired of his kisses. She loved the feel of him, thick and hard, inside of her, where he belonged. She came before him, like she always did, and then buried her face in his neck, catching her breath. They took a little while to just enjoy the moment, both of them wrapped in each other, skin against skin, and her heart beating furiously.

"I love you, Elena," Damon said, his forehead resting against hers.

"I love you too, Damon," Elena replied, kissing him and smiling against his lips. "So much."

He grinned back.

They moved to lie down on her bed, facing each other.

Elena had never thought she would get this with him, yet here she was.

She was his, he was hers, and she was never letting him go.

x x x

Elena wrinkled her nose when she got a text message from Liam the next day saying Hey.

Did he not remember the last conversation they had? Maybe he heard about she and Damon having some issues, and he was checking to see if her single self needed a shoulder to cry on.

Elena replied back with one word: Nope.

Liam replied with, Can't blame a man for trying.

Idiot. Liam Davis was an idiot.

She put down her phone and glanced up at Caroline, who was frying bacon and eggs for the two of them. Caroline was being extremely quiet, which was very unusual for her. "Is everything okay?"

Caroline turned to her and said, "Not really."

"What happened?" Elena asked, brow furrowing in worry. "Caroline, tell me."

"Wes and I broke up," Caroline whispered, expelling a deep sigh as she served the food onto two plates.

"Why? What happened?" Elena asked.

"He said he is not ready for a relationship and can't commit to me," her friend explained, looking confused. "I don't get men. He said he wanted a relationship when we first started chatting online, which is why I decided to meet him because we both wanted the same things, you now? And now, he is changing his tune all of a sudden."

"What did you say to him?" Elena asked her, carrying both plates to the table. Caroline grabbed the cutlery and followed.

"I said that I thought we were on the same page and told him I was confused with what he wanted. Basically, he wanted to keep sleeping with me, but said he wasn't ready for anything else right now."

Elena gritted her teeth. Did Wes just say what he wanted Caroline to hear to get her into bed? Or did he realise he wasn't ready for a relationship? She didn't understand men sometimes. It was like they ruined every woman they came across until they had found the one.

"I'm sorry, sweetie." Elena placed her hand on Caroline's. "Do you love him though?"

Caroline shook her head. "No, I don't think so. I like him a lot, and it hurts that he is gone now, but I don't think I love him."

"You did what you could," Elena told her. "You opened your heart and took a chance. Love is a gamble, and you took one, so that's all you can do, right? He wasn't the one for you, but someone out there will be." She paused, considering something. "Damon has a hot friend named Enzo."

Caroline laughed, shaking her head. "I don't think that's the best idea right now…Maybe in a few weeks."

Elena rolled her eyes, taking a bite out of her toast. "I feel like punching Wes in the nuts."

"There's no point," Caroline said. "He is dead to us now."

"RIP Wes," Elena said, chewing slowly. "At least I will never have to see or hear about Aaron again."

Caroline's lip twitched.

"And you can find a handsome man next time."

Caroline giggled at that, and finally started to eat. "I forgot I told you about that."

"Do you have to see him again? Like, does he have any stuff here or whatever?"

"He had nothing here," she said, looking sad again. It was hard for Elena to be happy when her best friend was down.

"I'm sorry, Caroline."

"Me too," Caroline said, shrugging. "Oh, well, another one bites the dust. I'm sorry, I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want to ruin your mood. You and Damon just sorted out your relationship, finally, and I didn't want to drag you down with me."

"I'm your best friend. You can drag me down with you whenever you like, that's what I'm here for. Hopefully, I can carry you up with me instead."

Caroline sighed and stabbed her fork into her eggs. "I just need a few days to wallow. I will be fine. I always am. We better hurry up or we are both going to be late to work."

Elena nodded, putting some egg and bacon on her toast, and started making quick work of it. She hugged Caroline tightly before they both left the house, then on the way to work call up a florist to send her some flowers. Her friend's favourites were peonies, and Elena hoped they would cheer Caroline up a little.

When she arrived at the office, everyone was already here, and the phone was already ringing. She quickly answered it then checked over the schedules for the day.

"You looked so cute when I left this morning," Damon said in welcome. "I wanted to take a photo, but then thought that would be a little creepy."

"I'm glad you didn't," Elena said with a little grin. The urge to reach out and touch him made her fingers tingle. "What are we going to do about work?"

"I don't know," he said, shrugging. "Let me think about it, okay? I will figure out the best way, but I think that I'm just going to have to tell them. It is not going to affect our work." He paused. "Any more than it already does, anyway. I don't see why it would be such a big deal."

"I don't think it is that simple though," she told him, tapping her pen on the table. "But I will leave it in your hands."

"It will be fine," Damon reassured her. "I have to head out, but I will see you at lunch."

"Okay," she said, wanting a kiss. Her gaze dropped to his lips.

"Elena—"

"Yeah?" she mumbled, completely distracted.

"I'm leaving before I kiss you here in front of everyone, not giving a shit what anyone says," Damon growled.

Elena giggled. "Okay."

He cursed and stormed into the elevator. She saw him adjusted himself, eyes on hers, before the doors closed.

She grinned.

He shook his head at her.

All hers.

Damon was all hers.

* * *

 **OK, they finally told each other the three little words:) So, where are they heading next? Keep watching the space...  
**

 **And I'm planning my next Delena story which will be more exciting - there will be secrets, lies and betrayal...oops!**

 **Thank you for all the support:)**


	21. Chapter 21

Elena entered the house that afternoon with wine, chocolate, ice cream and candy. She had ordered Chinese food for them and put on Caroline's favourite movie, which happened to be _She's The Man_. Damon had wanted to stay over tonight, but she told him that she needed to be here for Caroline. She didn't want to be in the room with him while Caroline was sitting out here alone, all sad and miserable over Wes. Damon understood, saying he would stay over tomorrow night instead.

"You didn't have to do this," Caroline said as she saw the spread Elena had set up for them. She grabbed a chocolate bar and joined Elena on the couch. "But I do appreciate it."

Elena pressed Play and smiled at her friend. "Distractions are key. Tonight, we are going to watch movies, eat and just relax. Nothing else exists."

"Thanks again for the flowers, Elena. They are stunning. Everyone who came into the library stopped and admired them." Caroline hesitated, and then admitted, "When I first got them, I thought maybe they were from Wes, but then I read the note. First, I was a little upset that they weren't from him, but the note made me smile. Go to hell Wes. I don't need him."

 _The note said, 'Who needs a man when you have a friend like me?'_

"No, you don't need him," Elena concurred, turning up the volume a little. "Forget about him. To hell everyone who doesn't see how amazing you are. He will probably regret it too, but too bad."

Caroline rolled her eyes and looked at the TV. "I don't know about all that, but I will agree with the 'forget about him' part."

"I should pour us some wine," Elena said, standing up and heading to the kitchen. She returned with two very full glasses of red wine, giving one to Caroline.

She sipped hers, but Caroline gulped hers.

It was going to be a long, drunk night.

x x x

 _Two Weeks Later_

"Elena, can you please come into my office?" Alaric asked, setting Elena's nerves on edge. She and Damon both had decided they didn't want to have to keep hiding their relationship, so they had called a meeting with the other three lawyers. That was this morning. Now, Alaric was summoning her, and she didn't think it was a good thing.

 _Am I about to lose my job?_

She smoothed her blazer down with her hands, then stood and followed Alaric. When she entered his office, all the lawyers in the firm were there, except for Damon.

Oh God.

"Take a seat," Alaric said.

Elena stiffly sat down, wanting to run and hide, but she forced herself to keep her chin up. It was awkward having all the men here knew about her private life, even though essentially it had nothing to do with them. She was not making out with Damon here at work. She had kissed him inside his office once, and once only. She was not unprofessional, and she was good at her job. She didn't believe that she deserved to lose it.

"Mr Salvatore has brought to light the relationship between the two of you," Alaric started, looking around the table. "We all frown upon office relationships, and we think it is very unprofessional for the two of you to get so well acquainted whilst meeting here at the firm."

Elena opened her mouth, but then he continued.

"It is also a conflict of interest, don't you think? You know how much I like you, Elena. You are a hard worker and you keep this place running, but I don't know how we can make this work. None of us are happy with this outcome. I'm a little disappointed in you, Elena."

 _Well, ouch._

Hearing the word 'disappointed' from someone was always the worst. Elena would rather just be yelled at.

"I'm sorry," she told them. "This isn't something I planned. It just happened. But I would never let it affect my job, or my productivity here. I'm good at what I do, and if Damon hadn't told you, you wouldn't have known what was going on here. That is evidence that we are both capable of maintaining professional etiquette whilst in the office."

Alaric studied her, swirling on his chair, left and right. "Okay, just let us talk and we will get back to you on our course of action."

She guessed she was being dismissed.

She exited, a nervous wreck, and sat back at her desk, wondering if this was even her desk anymore.

If she was going to lose her job, she was going to be upset.

It was such a messed-up thing that Damon's job wasn't even in question—not that Elena would want him to be in trouble with her, of course—but she had to wonder if she was the lawyer and he was the receptionist, would they still have the same outcome? It just felt like it was always the woman who came under fire in these situations.

She glanced at her phone; she had put it on silent, and there were missed calls and messages from Damon. He left for court after the meeting, and she guessed he had been trying to warn her, because one message said they wanted to speak with her. She didn't want to call Damon back, in case Alaric came out to call her in again. She felt like she was in court about to be found guilty or innocent.

She tapped her foot.

What felt like an eternity later, Alaric called her back into his office. This time, they were alone; the other men probably returning to their busy days.

"So we have decided that, because of your good work ethic, we are going to let you stay on." Alaric paused, and then added, "We aren't happy with the situation though, and we are asking you to keep your relationship away from the office. Stay professional, and don't let it affect your job in any way, or we will have to let you go."

Elena nodded and told him that she understood.

She walked back to her desk, feeling relieved and annoyed at the same time. _Are they going to treat me the same after this, or have I lost their respect?_

She didn't want to work here if they weren't going to treat her the same. Were they going to be watching she and Damon closely? She felt like maybe they shouldn't have said anything. They should have waited until they were getting married, if that happened. Now they still couldn't act like they were together and they were going to be breathing down their necks. Or maybe everything would be okay?

Elena didn't know. Only time would tell.

Damon was still in court during lunchtime, so she ate alone. He only returned in the evening, rushing straight to her.

"Are you okay?" Damon asked, looking worried. "I'm so sorry they spoke to you when they knew I wasn't here. You know what? We should quit. We can easily find new jobs. It is their loss."

Elena glanced around, making sure no one else was nearby. "It is fine. They said I can keep my job, even though apparently it is a conflict of interest. Let's not make any hasty decisions, let's just see how it all goes."

His jaw was tighter than she had ever seen it. "I just don't like how they handled it."

"And they don't like us being together, and we knew there would be some consequences, so let's just keep it cool. This is only day one," Elena told him, not wanting him to react then regretted it. They needed to be smart about this.

"Yeah, okay," he said, running his hand through his hair. "I'm not happy though."

"I can see that," she remarked, rolling her eyes. "You better go, I know you are busy all day. I will see you after work."

"Okay," he agreed, giving her hand a squeeze. "I love you. If anyone even looks at you wrong, call me."

"I will," she lied.

"And?"

"And I love you too," she told him, smiling widely.

x x x

Elena was sitting on the kitchen counter, watching Damon paced and ranted about what happened today. Caroline was sitting next to her, wide-eyed, listening to him.

"It doesn't sound that bad," Caroline concluded. "Elena gets to keep her job, and Damon, it sounds like you just got a stern frowning-upon. It will all blow over, and soon they won't give a shit."

Damon stopped in his tracks, looking between the two women.

"And Elena can handle a little telling off without you," Caroline added, smirking. "She is a big girl. You don't need to feel guilty that you weren't there, even though you are her accomplice in crime. She took the heat. She is a ride-or-die kind of girl, just go with it."

His lip twitched. "You are absolutely right, Caroline."

Elena threw her hands up in the air. "Oh, so her you listen to."

"I am very wise," Caroline said, nodding. "Unless it comes to my own love life."

"We should introduce her to Enzo," Elena stated, and not for the first time. "What do you think, Damon?"

"I think that I'm not getting involved in that," Damon said, stepping closer to Elena and resting between her legs. "So when Enzo messed up, you can't use it against me."

"That sounds promising," Caroline replied in a dry tone. She grabbed the elastic off her wrist and tied her curly hair in a high ponytail. "I think I will just let someone find me. I'm not looking anymore, because I only find the douche lords."

"And their friends," Elena added, thinking of Aaron. "Although, if Damon hadn't seen me out with Aaron, he never would have come over to cock-block me, and then we never would have gotten together."

"We would still have gotten together," Damon said confidently, giving Elena a quick kiss. "I was already in too deep by then."

"Are we going out for dinner, or are you guys about to make out on the table?" Caroline interrupted, poking her tongue out at Elena.

"Let's go then," Elena said, kissing Damon once more before jumping off the table. "I vote for Mexican."

"Mexican it is," Damon agreed, wrapping one arm around Elena, then the other around Caroline.

Elena still thought Caroline should meet Enzo.

* * *

 **I'm so, so excited to know that my readers are enjoying this Delena story. I can't believe there are more than 250 reviews. When I first posted this story, I was worried that this story might not be so attractive because it was only plain Delena's love story. That's why I'm so, so glad to know you guy/gals like this story so much.**

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	22. Chapter 22

Elena met Damon's brother and sister-in-law, and their daughter.

"It is nice to officially meet you, Valarie," Elena told Valarie, feeling a little embarrassed over what happened the last time she saw her. She didn't think she was rude or anything—at least out loud, anyway.

"You too, Elena," Valarie, smiling. "I have heard so much about you. The day I came into Damon's office, as soon as the two of us went in the elevator, he said to me, 'See the beauty at reception? She is going to be mine.'"

Elena felt heat rising in her cheeks.

"I kind of thought you were his new woman," Elena admitted, helping Valarie cut up some of the vegetables for the salad. Damon and his brother, Stefan, were out grilling the steak. Damon's niece, Anna, was with them, playing in the garden.

Valarie laughed, her face lighting up. "Between you and me, I think he wanted you to think that."

"Yeah, I kind of guessed that," Elena admitted, shaking her head. "It wasn't one of our finest moments."

"Love makes people do crazy things. It is like all common sense leaves you. Sometimes, I look back at my past relationships and wonder why I fought to keep some of them, because I wasn't happy and neither were they. But in that moment, I thought I was in love. It wasn't until I met Stefan that I found out what true love is. And now I will do anything to keep it, you know?"

"I totally understand," Elena told her, wanting to sit on the counter, but not wanting to be rude. "I'm glad things have calmed down now. The start of a relationship is fun and exciting, but it is also pretty scary not knowing where you stand with someone, not knowing if you will be good enough for them or not. It is a vulnerable thing, to show your true self to someone, show them the best of you, and then have the possibility of them thinking that it is not what they want, that it is not good enough for them." She paused, recalling how she and Damon had made it to this point. "I guess that's where the whole 'everything happens for a reason' comes in. The one who is meant to stay, will."

"Yeah, they will, and they will fight to be by your side," Valarie added. "I'm so happy Damon found someone. We thought he would be single, living the bachelor life, for the rest of his existence."

Elena laughed at that. "I'm glad Damon found me."

They finished making the salad, along with a pasta salad and mashed potatoes, and left them on the table, waiting for the meat to be ready. Elena thought it would be awkward meeting and talking with Valarie, but she was lovely, and Stefan was very easy going and funny. Elena felt it was like looking into her future, one that she was not complaining about. In fact, it was like a dream.

"Are you okay?" Damon asked when he came inside, Anna on his hip.

"What do you think I'm going to do to her?" Valarie asked, sounding offended. "I'm not going to chase away the only woman you have brought home since…"

His ex-girlfriend Rose?

Awkward.

Damon sighed and handed Valarie her daughter. "I know you are not going to chase her away. Elena isn't really the biggest fan of meeting new people, so I'm just making sure she is okay."

"I'm fine," Elena told him, rising up on her toes to kiss him on the lips. "But thank you for asking."

"You are welcome," he said, his intense stare softening on Elena.

They all sat down to eat, and Elena loved watching Damon interacting with his family, especially his niece. She had never seen him with a child before, and she couldn't help but be mesmerised. He was so great with Anna, and she could tell he was going to make an amazing father someday.

After dinner, Elena helped Valarie clean up, while they drank some wine together. After they said their goodbyes, Damon drove them back to his house, where they made love to each other all night long.

Elena couldn't imagine a more perfect evening.

x x x

"Damn, you look sexy today," Damon whispered into Elena's ear when he passed her at work. She was wearing black pants with a black top and blazer, paired with her new nude heels that she was in love with.

"Thank you," Elena replied, winking at him. "Hopefully, you will be ripping these clothes off later."

"I definitely will be," Damon replied, lust-filled eyes roaming all over her.

"We have a problem."

"What?" he asked, lifting his gaze.

Elena showed him his schedule, pointing to a name on the list. "This woman. You are seeing her today. Last time she was here, I believe you kissed her."

"She kissed me—"

"Whatever," Elena said, pursing her lips. "Don't let her kiss you again."

"Elena," Damon started in a gentle, calm tone. "I'm not going to let her touch me. We weren't together back then."

"I know," she replied, sliding the schedule away. "You said you have been with her before though. She is familiar with you, and I don't know, it is not a very nice feeling for me."

She was jealous and she didn't know how to deal with it very well.

"Do you trust me?" he asked, searching her eyes.

"Yes," she said truthfully. "I do."

"Okay then." Damon squeezed her hand. "Then trust me. I'm not stupid enough to do anything to lose you, Elena. You know everything now, and I'm not going to go through your 'cold shoulder, treating me like a nemesis' thingy again. Once is more than enough, thank you."

Elena smirked. "I actually called you my nemesis in my head once. Good times."

Damon sighed, but his expression became gentler as he watched her. "She will come in and go out without so much as touching me, okay? You have my word."

"Okay," she said, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry this is even an issue."

"You know I value your honesty. It is much easier for me when you just tell me how you are feeling."

Elena smiled, and he smiled back.

"We totally have this relationship stuff nailed," she blurted out.

Damon threw his head back and laughed, so she shushed him, not wanting any of the lawyers to come out and ask what was going on here. They had been watching them closely, and it seemed like they were looking for any reason to call them out on shit.

 _Jerks._

"Yeah, we do. It comes naturally to us, because we know there is no replacing each other. You are the only one for me, and I'm the only one for you."

"You sound pretty confident there," Elena teased, licking her lips. "You know I don't believe that every person only has one soul mate."

"I know, but you will never get the chance to find out if there is anyone else who fits you as well as I do, so it is not an issue," he said, smirking. He was in a dark blue shirt today, rolled up his wrists. He must spend a lot of money on clothes, because every time Elena saw him it was like he was in something new.

"You are a clothes whore, aren't you?" she asked, giving him a once-over.

"What?" Damon asked, amusement flashing in his eyes. "Did you just say?"

"You know, everyone has a vice, and yours seems to be clothes. You are a clothes whore. I called it."

"And what is your vice?"

She thought about it. "Food. And makeup."

Damon laughed again, leaning forward. "I can see that. I like to look good. And you are so cute right now, all I want to do is lean over this table, kiss you deeply until you forget your own name, then put my hand in your panties to see how wet you are. Then I want to lick my fingers so I can have your taste in my mouth to tide me over until I get to take you home after work and fuck you properly. Hmm…I think I want you to sit on my face tonight. Yes, that sounds like a good plan."

Elena glanced around the office with widened eyes, double-checking they were alone. "Shhhh, you can't say that here! Anyone can be listening!"

"No one is even here, Elena. Relax."

"You relax."

"Baby?"

"Yes?"

"I love you," he said, then walked away, leaving her with a goofy smile on her face.

Elena loved being in love.

x x x

Damon's client came in, but Elena was okay with it. She trusted him. When their meeting was over, he opened his door and winked at her as the client stormed out, not looking happy.

Elena had her line ready as he came over to her.

"One unsatisfied client?"

"Very unsatisfied," he replied, shaking his head at her. "She tried to touch me and I told her that I'm taken. I also said that if she wants a good lawyer, she can stay and behave appropriately, or she can go and find someone else."

"What did she choose?"

"To stay," he said, stretching his neck from side to side. "I'm good at what I do."

"Not just a pretty face, huh?"

"You are the pretty one in this relationship." He smiled widely. "No, 'pretty' is too casual a word. Beautiful, stunning, amazing, phenomenal." He paused, trying to think of another term. "The sexiest woman I have laid eyes on."

Elena rolled her eyes at him, but inside her heart did a little flip. "Laying it on a little thick today, aren't you, Damon?"

"Just speaking the truth."

"I want to kiss you so badly right now," she said, staring at his full lips.

"Which is exactly why I'm going to get some work done," Damon said, walking away. She tracked his movements, like a lion hunting its prey, until he was out of sight, disappearing into his office.

Elena got back to work, forcing herself to concentrate. If she wanted to keep this job, she needed to prove that she was capable of a high standard of work, even with that sexy man being so close by. She had done it up until now, so she didn't know why today was such a struggle.

She must concentrate.

She could do this.

She pushed Damon out of her head and focused on the task at hand.

* * *

 **You guys/gals are the greatest! Without your support and kind reviews, I don't think I would continue this journey...The writers in this Delena website aren't professional writers but we try our very best to write Delena stories. Not everyone will love our writing and this is life. But we will still try very hard to keep Delena stories alive because of the passion we have.**

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	23. Chapter 23

They made it a month with no incidents at work, so Elena assumed her job was safe. Alaric and the other lawyers treated her the same, and everything went back to normal, just like Caroline said it would. Elena was grateful. She didn't want to have to find another job, and she got to spend more time with Damon this way. She also truly enjoyed the job, and didn't want to move.

She hated change.

Damon headed to the gym after work, while she went straight home. When she saw a car parked out the front of her house—Liam's car, to be exact—she went on alert. What was Liam doing here? She had told him she would call the cops if he came around her again, yet here he was. Fuming, Elena got out of her car, stormed inside, and then came to a standstill as she saw him sitting on her couch. He was not alone. Caroline, who must have let him in, was sitting there looking like she would rather be anywhere else, and there was also another woman with him. She had dark brown and green eyes. Beautiful, but not classically so.

"What are you doing here, Liam?" Elena asked, looking to Caroline, who shrugged.

"I didn't know what to do," Caroline said to Elena, sounding apologetic. "He wouldn't leave, just kept knocking, and I felt sorry for him."

"And who is this?" Elena asked to the woman, who was keeping silent.

"I just wanted to talk to you," Liam said. "We never got to sit down and have a proper conversation, Elena. And this is Rose."

Elena went still. "As in Damon's ex-girlfriend?"

What the hell was she doing here?

Elena looked at Liam. What was this game he was playing? "What do you want? And why is she here?"

"I want you to listen to her so she can tell you what Damon is really like. I thought I could just let you go, but I can't have it on my conscience that you are with that man."

"As opposed to being with you?" Elena asked, eyes going wide as a saucer. She turned to Caroline, who was cringing. "The asshole?"

"I didn't know this was Damon's ex-girlfriend. She is pregnant, I couldn't let her just stand out there all day."

"You are going to get us killed one day," Elena told her friend in exasperation. Then she looked to Liam and pursed her lips. "Or kidnapped or something."

"This is who Damon has chosen as my replacement?" Rose said, smirking. "Downgrade much?"

Elena's head snapped to her. The woman needed to go back to being silent. She looked down at her stomach. The retort of 'Oh, so you kept that one' was on her lips, but she couldn't say it. She was not an ugly person, and she was not going to let Rose turned her into one.

"Why are you even here?" Elena asked Rose. "Why don't you both just leave?"

She pulled out her phone and sent Damon a quick text. He needed to be here. She could handle Liam, would probably just call the cops, but she didn't know why Rose was here.

"Damon upgraded, actually," Caroline told Rose, giving her a once-over and a look that simply said 'You ain't shit.'

Elena loved her best friend.

"Sit down, please," Liam said to Elena, and she complied, just so she could get him to leave sooner.

"You have three minutes."

"Damon isn't going to be a long-term thing. I am. Why don't you give me another chance? I won't mess up again, I promise. Rose here will tell you all about him. He is not the man for you, Elena. You deserve better."

Elena smirked. "I see."

Liam looked relieved, like he actually thought his words had an impact on her.

"So, you found his ex and brought her here hoping she could persuade me to leave Damon and be with you instead?"

"I just came because I wanted to see who my replacement was," Rose added, pissing Elena off further.

Elena looked at Caroline, wondering what she was meant to do here. These people were just here because they didn't like the fact that she and Damon were happy; they just wanted them to be miserable. They could try and do what they wanted, but it was not going to work. She didn't know how Damon was going to take the fact that the woman who broke his heart and trust in females was here, sitting on her couch, carrying another man's baby. This couldn't be easy for him. It pissed Elena off that Rose had history with him, and therefore, in a way, a certain hold on him and his emotions. Rose didn't deserve that. She deserves nothing.

Elena didn't know what Liam thought he could accomplish from bringing Rose here, but besides the restraining order she was going to slap on his ass, it definitely didn't have the desired effect. She just hated him even more now. He was proving what a creep he really was, while Rose being here just blew her mind. Which woman just came over to their ex's new girl's house and sat on the couch like it was normal?

 _Someone who isn't normal, that's who_ , Elena thought.

"I think the two of you need to leave," Elena announced, standing up.

"I think I will wait for Damon to arrive," Rose said, smiling evilly. She looked at Liam. "What do you say, Liam?"

Luckily for Elena, there was a bang on the door, and Caroline jumped up to get it. When she walked back into the room with Damon, Elena felt nothing but relief.

"What the hell?" Damon exclaimed, looking from Liam to Rose. He spoke directly to Rose when he asked, "What on earth are you doing here?"

Elena saw his eyes flashed when he saw her stomach, his mouth tightening. He pulled Elena's back against his chest and squeezed her hand, reassuring her that everything was going to be all right.

"Liam found me," Rose said, standing up and walking over to them. "Said you are going to hurt the woman he loves, so I thought it would be interesting to see what all the fuss is about. You look good, Damon."

Elena gritted her teeth. This woman had no shame, and she was seriously questioning Damon's taste now.

"Well," Caroline announced, pointing to the direction of her room. "I'm just going to go over there. Call me if you need backup."

Elena watched her friend leave, jealous that she got to do so.

Rose put her hands on her stomach. "I'm having a baby girl."

Elena dug her nails into her palm, turning to look at Damon. With a completely blank expression, he said, "Both of you leave, now. Do not show up at my woman's house again."

Liam stood, now looking nervous. "Damon—"

Damon let go of Elena, walked up to Liam and grabbed him by the throat. "Elena is mine. Do not come near her again, do you understand me? Do whatever the hell you want with Rose, Elena? You stay away from her."

He let Liam go, who stumbled back, clasping his throat with both hands. One last longing look at Elena, then Liam went, taking Rose with him.

What a nightmare.

x x x

"How are you feeling?" Elena asked Damon as they slid beneath the sheets naked.

"I don't understand why she came here," Damon said, pulling her against him. "It hurt to see her pregnant, when she didn't keep my son or daughter."

Elena swallowed hard as she listened to the pain in his voice.

"I don't want to see the two of them ever again," he admitted, kissing the top of her head. "They need to let us be. I don't give a damn if they don't like seeing us happy. They need to stay away from us."

"I'm going to file a police report tomorrow," Elena said. "A restraining order against Liam. I think he is nuts. I don't want to take a chance."

"Yeah, I think that's best," he agreed, sighing. "Can't believe I was friends with him."

"Can't believe I dated him."

"Okay, you win," he replied, sounding amused. "Or lose, depending on how you look at it."

"I win, because it is me in bed with you right now, loved and cherished, and happier than I have ever been in my life. They are only bitter because they don't have this."

"They should go to hell," he whispered into her ear, nibbling on the lobe. "I wouldn't trade this for anything. Everything worked out how it was supposed to, you know? I was made to love you, Elena. No one is going to take that away from me."

His words, spoken so sincerely, killed her.

How Elena loved this man.

She glanced up at him, and then kissed him.

Deeply.

They were solid.

They could try to break them up, but they would fail.

Together, she and Damon would never lose.

They were unbreakable.

Because there was no more game.

* * *

 **Sorry, this isn't a long chapter. Just want to let you know that "The Game" will be coming to an end soon as the next chapter will be an epilogue. I'm very happy that my readers have enjoyed this plain Delena story as much as I do. I do enjoy plain Delena stories but sometimes I do like reading some drama, excitement, crime, adventures in Delena as well - just like some of my favourite DE stories from this website eg Captive of Her Beauty, Rainy Days and Mondays, Cannonball, Gravity, Crying Lightning, The Night We Met, Bourbon in Your Eyes etc.**

 **Hopefully you will like my new Delena story too:) Thank you so much for everything!**


	24. Epilogue

_Two years later_

Damon kissed Elena's stomach, and everyone in the room said a collective "Aww."

Elena smiled at Damon, seeing the love in his eyes for their unborn son. He was going to be such a wonderful father. After they got married last year, she went off the pill. She didn't think she would get pregnant so soon, but two months after, she was carrying his child. They couldn't have been happier.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked Elena, kissing her lips this time. "Water, juice…Anything?"

It was Elena's baby shower, and Damon insisted on being here, so it was more like a party than anything, with all their friends and family here, all spoiling the baby with gifts. They were so blessed. Caroline and Enzo arrived, hand in hand, Enzo carrying a sack full of gifts in the other.

Elena guessed they were going to the godmother and godfather, not that she had told them that yet.

"Can you get me a pink cupcake?" she asked Damon, craving the frosting.

"Of course," he said. "Do you want some peanut butter sandwiches too?"

He remembered that she loved peanut butter sandwiches.

"No, thank you," she told him, feeling all mushy inside.

Damon nodded and left to get Elena a cupcake. She watched him until Caroline blocked her line of sight.

"Bought the whole store, did you?" Elena teased, as Caroline started piling the wrapped gifts on the table.

Caroline kissed Elena's cheek. "You can't expect me not to go overboard."

Enzo kissed the top of Elena's head next. "Pregnancy looks good on you."

Elena blushed, waving her hand in the air. "Stop it, you. Thank you for the gifts, you didn't have to."

"Yes, we did," Enzo told her, wrapping his arm around Caroline. Elena introduced the two about a year ago, and they had been together ever since. Elena seriously thought that her next career should be in matchmaking.

"Here you go," Damon said, bringing Elena a paper plate with not one but four cupcakes on it. He gave it to her, then said hello to Enzo and Caroline.

"Are you going to eat all of those?" Caroline asked with widened eyes.

Elena giggled. "I might."

"Can I have one?"

"No."

Caroline laughed, and then grabbed one anyway.

"That's low, Caroline, stealing from a pregnant woman."

"What's yours is mine" was her quick reply.

Damon sat down next to Elena, taking her free hand in his. It was a little sticky from the icing, but he didn't complain. He didn't even let it go.

This right here, this was what love was.

 _THE END_

* * *

 **Thank you so much for all the support and kind reviews. I didn't expect my readers will enjoy this story so much:) It will take a few days before I post my new Delena story - sorry about that. Hopefully you guys/gals will enjoy my new story.**

 **Once again, thank you for everything:)**


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